Neji's Bad Day
by festival-chan loves books
Summary: Neji wakes up to Lee's singing and TenTen's weapons raging.  How can it possibly be a good day? And it's not.  Neji has a terrible, horrible, no good very bad day. NejiTen.
1. A Rather Unpleasant Start

* * *

I do not own Naruto. If I did… 

(dances off into fantasies of locking Naruto in janitor's closet and replacing him with favored insomniac but lovable sand-controlling badger-tanuki-racoon-boy as main character of the story)

(and in Konohagakure, Gaara shudders.

"What's up, Gaara?" asks Naruto, while treating said ex-Jinchuuriki to Ichiraku's ramen.

"Nothing... I just had this weird feeling that some crazy fangirl was talking about me... and you, too."

"Well, what was she talking about?"

"I don't know... but I don't like the way it sounded... and I don't think you would either.")

There will be a Neji-pairing. Just because I love the idea of Neji-in-love.

* * *

Neji's Bad Day-------

When he woke up that morning, the sun was shining (no clouds) and there were 8 birds outside singing.

Neji would have thought it might be a good day if it were not for the fact that Lee was outside with the birds. This in itself would not be terrible, only mildly horrible, except for the fact that Lee, too, was singing. It was a song that either Neji had never heard before or Lee was making up. The latter possiblity was the likeliest, considering the lyrics.

"YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTH!!!!!!!!! I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE YOU YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!! LA LA LA LA LAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!! YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!!!!!!!! I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE YOU MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Shut up, Lee," an irritable TenTen growled from nearby.

And TenTen was annoyed.

Neji and TenTen had bonded, perhaps from the fact that they didn't trust green Spandex. However much Neji preferred to talk to TenTen (rather than the twin Green Beasts), she could be quite a handful when she was ticked off.

Like today, apparently. Neji heard TenTen's distinct weapons summoning technique. This was followed by a multitude of kunais and various other weaponry raining from clear skies.

After that, Neji heard silence. Even the birds shut up (or they'd been knocked unconcious by the maelstrom of weapons TenTen summoned).

He hoped that his day wouldn't go like that. He also knew that trying to wish for something like that was like whistling for the moon to come: it wasn't going to come, no matter how badly you wanted it to.

He rolled over and buried his face in the pillow, intending to hide. Then he realized if he did that, they would stand outside under his window for longer. He'd probably get in trouble with Hiashi later for the noise, considering those were his teammates and all. That would be bad.

He rolled out of bed, and went to change into his clothes.

When he opened his closet door, intending to pull out a clean outfit, something hard, square, and pointy fell on his head, bouncing off painfully and landing on his bare foot.

He saw stars for a confused minute, and when those went away, he looked down.

A hardcover child's picture book sat there innocently on top of his left foot.

Inside the cover was scrawled in a child's printed handwriting:

Property of Hanabi Hyuuga. DO NOT TAKE!

That brat. What a stupid trick. She'd put it between the doorframe and door of his closet. How had he not noticed?

He made a mental note to burn the book later, and put it on his bedside table.

Back to the closet.

When he took a shirt off of one side, he realized his closet had been a careful balance act when the other side fell down, spilling his trademark shirt and shorts all over the floor. He cursed. He'd clean it up later, though. Lee was starting to sing again. Floating in on air currents were the out of tune, badly sung words:

"YOUUUUUUUUUUTH, GLORIOUS YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Lee? Those are the wrong words," said TenTen.

"I changed them with my YOUTHFUL imagination, youthful TenTen!"

Neji could sense TenTen's bloodlust from in his bedroom, sending an odd tingly feeling down his back. He wasn't used to this feeling. Could it be… fear?

He managed to get through putting on clothing and his normal bandages without much hassle. The real problem was when he stepped outside of his room.

His bare feet stepped onto several pins. Jumping as fast as he could off of them, and brushing the pins still stuck on his feet while he was in midair (fast ninjas like him can do that kind of thing), he landed on the ground at the front of the stairs, feet stinging painfully, and possibly bleeding. Why those were there was beyond him. He assumed Hanabi. She seemed to be out to get him lately.

He was lost in thought as to why this might be, and missed the drops of blood he was leaving on the white carpeting of his house.

Halfway down the stairs (feet still stinging), he luckily realized that the step he was about to step on was covered in marbles. Grabbing the stair railing, he jumped over it… only to find after he'd landed that the next one was also covered in marbles.

He slid hard, bouncing on every step. When he landed, several marbles that had taken the journey with him landed on his head. When he combed his fingers through his hair in frustration, it was static-y from rubbing against every single carpeted step.

Cursing once again, he turned toward his kitchen for breakfast.

Pouring himself some milk and cereal (after checking the room out with his Byakugan for any more stupid traps he could fall into), he got himself a glass of apple juice absentmindedly, still trying to figure out why Hanabi was out to get him. What had he done to her?

There was that time he'd said her drawing of a bird was a good drawing of an elephant (but that was an accident, he really hadn't meant to! He'd really thought it was an elephant, it had a long nose-thing in the front and a really round body) and that time that he'd dumped water on her (but she didn't NORMALLY stand outside his window, really, she couldn't blame him for that one, and he'd dumped the water out the window because that was where his room leaked when it rained and it made more sense than going all the way across the hall to dump out the rainwater in the sink, and he was just lazy like that) and…

Oh.

It was dinner (two weeks ago today) , and he always went over to Hinata's for dinner because she could cook and he couldn't. There was this small boy there, and he'd asked Hanabi if he was her boyfriend, assuming not, as Hanabi was a.) too young, not even he, Neji, 18-year-old jounin, had ever had a girlfriend, and b.) far too annoying to ever attract a bloodsucking mosquito, much less a sentient male human being.

However, both the boy and Hanabi turned an interesting shade of red.

Oops.

The cereal he was eating had gotten slightly soggy, so he sipped his apple juice thoughtfully, trying to figure out how to apologize (and also trying to get rid of the lingering texture of soggy wheat), then choked and ran to the sink.

There was something GROSS in his drink.

It was round and chewy. He had no idea what it was, until dissection with several very, very long pointy things (he had no idea what they were, but they were in one of his drawers of cooking supplies that Hinata-sama had insisted that he be stocked with) proved it was a ball of mold.

He nearly puked up the spoonful of Mini Wheats he had eaten.

Looking at the date on the apple juice, it was precisely two weeks earlier that this would have started to go bad.

Yes, Hanabi had been plotting her revenge for quite a while.

He was actually quite amazed and surprised. He hadn't thought that Hanabi was intelligent enough beyond jutsus (and even there she wasn't amazing) to trap a rat and here she'd surprised him.

Of course, it helped to be aware of stuff like this before it happened. Then one could take the crucial preventative measures to avert such disasters.

If only he'd known.

Well, this day was turning out to be a right pain.

"HYUUGA NEJI!" Neji jumped. "GET YOUR BUTT OUT HERE AND STOP COMBING YOUR HAIR OR WHATEVER OR WE WILL COME IN AND GET YOU! DO YOU WANT THE GREEN BEAST IN YOUR HOUSE? I CAN FIND SAKE REALLY FAST AROUND HERE!"

"No, thank you, TenTen," he muttered. He wasn't even going to get a decent breakfast, thanks to the balls of mold in his apple juice. He shuddered to think about that. How horrible.

"NEJI! MY ETERNAL RIVAL!" No need to guess who was talking. "I WILL COME IN AND RETRIEVE YOU SO WE CAN TRAAAAAAIN!!!!! YAY TRAINING!!!! WOOHOOOOOOO! YOSH!"

Neji thought about cursing again, but decided he'd done that enough this morning and moved on to find his shoes.

They were nowhere to be found.

Instead, what rested just in front of his door, where he placed his shoes every day, were a pair of neon green… things.

They were really high off the ground and had funny ribbons attached to the sides near the heel, and for reasons unknown, the shoemaker appeared to have made a mistake with these. The heel was not level with the toes. In fact, the heels on these shoes were a good three to four inches higher than the toes.

Why would anyone _pay for _a shoe like that? A little heel, maybe an inch or so, was ok for girls to wear. But anything larger? Wasn't that beside the point? They didn't look comfortable. In fact, they looked downright scary. Neji glared at the shoes, willing them to turn into his familiar beaten and weary-looking standard issue ninja sandals.

* * *

I'm sorry. I wouldn't have abruptly ended it like that if I didn't think that the next part needed rather serious help.

Anyway, I'd wanted to read a fanfic about Neji being amusingly tortured by someone for revenge (or just having a terrible but funny day in general) but I couldn't find one, so I thought, well, why don't I just write one? So I did. But let me know if there are any. I don't want to steal another person's idea.

And if you liked it or even if you didn't, please review.

Just review. I love getting comments. Even if you Katon Goukakyo no Jutsu me.


	2. The Great Hyuuga Neji

So... part two is up! I'm finally getting the hang of this thing. Please read and review!

Oh, and this part is better than the first chapter, I think.

Enjoy... and there will be more to come. However, it'll take longer 'cause I haven't written it yet. And if anyone wants a particular prank on Neji, let me know. I'm not good with pranks.

Here goes.

* * *

"OYE! NEJI! WE'RE COMING!" 

Oh, heavens. _Spare me this,_ thought Neji, _and I will do whatever is asked of me for the rest of my life. Require me to fly. I'll do it. Require me to be trampled by Lee. Or wear his clothes. I'll do it. I'll be a guinea pig for new jutsus. I'll do anything, __**anything**__, ANYTHING if I can just have my shoes, a good breakfast, and a good nap this afternoon._

The heavens did not listen to his plea.

Perhaps the deities of mischief had, because TenTen came, nearly flying up to his door.

"Neji?" she asked, perplexed. "What's with the shoes? Are you a crossdresser? I mean, you do have really long hair. I guess I never realized it before, but…"

Was she joking? The Great Hyuuga Neji, who figured out on his own the jutsu taught only to the heir? Jounin by the age of 16? Genius of the Hyuuga clan (though never to become heir)? Master of the Byakugan? A transvestite?

Perish the thought.

Then her second-to-last sentence hit him like that time Naruto threw a wet towel at him.

Was that an insult to his hair? He decided to ignore it outwardly, although he could already see his ego running off. His poor hair. He took care of it, that's all. Unlike _some_ members of Team 10. TenTen always had her hair up because of the split ends, which he worked hard to avoid, and Lee… Lee was an insult to style wherever he went. But he stopped himself from mentioning this, and answered her.

"No," he said. He decided to get straight to the point without whining or complaining about his morning. "These shoes are here. Mine are not. I believe Hanabi took them, because of an accidental slight I may have commited two weeks ago. She also probably replaced them with these."

"NEJI! ARE THOSE SHOES SOME YOUTHFUL ADVENTURE?" yelled the ever-deafening Green Beast.

"No."

"THEN WHY DO YOU HAVE THEM?"

"Because someone is playing a joke on me."

"THEN WE SHALL HAVE TO FIND OUT WHO!!!!!!!!!!"

"I know who it is."

Lee looked at him in surprise. "THEN WE SHALL HAVE TO PUNISH THIS PERSON!!!"

Neji did not want Lee, of all people to be in this.

"No, that's okay, Lee."

"IT IS NOT OKAY!"

"No, Lee, don't bother. Really. I can handle it on my own. Really."

"I WILL HELP!!!!!!!!!"

"Lee! NO! Don't help. Please. Really."

"BUT I MUST HELP!!! IT IS MY DUTY TO HELP A COMRADE IN NEED!"

Neji was going to have to use that tactic. When Lee started off like this, Neji needed to say one thing, and one thing only.

"Lee, playing pranks on someone else is-" TenTen leaped at him from behind.

"Neji, no! You can't do this! Think of the consequences!" she said, covering his mouth so he couldn't complete his sentence.

"TenTen, I have thought of the consequences. And I have come to the conclusion that this is the best way."

"NO! There must be another way! There has to be!" Neji broke free and faced Lee.

"Lee, playing pranks on someone else is youthful."

Lee's already rotund eyes got a little wider. "Really?" he asked.

"Really."

"For reals?"

"Yes."

"For really reals?"

"Yes."

"WHEEEEEEEEEEE! I SHALL PARTICIPATE IN THE YOUTHFUL PLAYING OF PRANKS ON ONE'S NEIGHBOR!! "

Lee ran around in circles while TenTen said, "I hope you're satisfied. Today will be terrible, thanks to you."

"Well, sorry. I just didn't want to get him involved with Hanabi."

TenTen sighed. "Can't blame you. So what did you do to her?"

"Long story." Actually, it wasn't, but he wanted to speak as little as possible right now.

"What has she done to you?"

"Another long story."

"I see. And what are you going to do about it?"

"Hn."

"What?"

"You sound like a psychologist."

"Thank you."

"Welcome."

"What are you going to do for shoes?"

"Go barefoot."

"That will probably hurt."

"Don't care. So would wearing these."

"What size do you wear?"

"Size 10, men's."

"Oh. I think that Hinata said Shino wears that size too."

"Your point? And what does Hinata care about Shino's shoe size?"

"You could borrow a pair of his."

"And what does Hinata care about Shino's shoe size?" He was supposed to be protecting Hinata! How could he not know that they were so close as to exchange shoe sizes? He needed to know this.

"They were dating a while back."

"What?" Neji said dangerously. TenTen felt quite nervous.

"Apparently someone said she needed to be a little less one-track-minded Naruto-obsessive."

Neji distinctly remembered saying that when particularly annoyed with Hinata one day, during training. That was when Naruto was gone and she was paying attention to nothing else other than possible news of his return.

Was TenTen saying this was HIS fault?

"Oh, really? I need to go have a talk with her. She needs to TELL me when she does stuff like this. I am supposed to protect her, after all, and I can't do that when I don't know what's going on."

"Oh, so do you LIKE her, Neji Hyuuga?"

Neji looked at her. Ew. Cousins, remember? He just felt like he'd failed a mission. And Neji Hyuuga, jounin and master of the Byakugan, did not fail missions.

"No," he said, perplexed. Surely TenTen knew that he didn't LIKE his cousin? Well, actually, she wouldn't. Neji hadn't told anyone who he liked, though it was most certainly not his _cousin_. No, who he really liked was-

"You're certainly taking an awful lot of interest in her!"

Oh, heavens. Would it never end? It wasn't even noon and two out of the three girls he regularly talked to were absolutely furious with him (and he was furious with the other one). Over little, tiny things, no less. Yes, Neji Hyuuga, in whom the blood of the Hyuuga ran thickest, who had more talent than anyone in the main branch, master of the Byakugan, wanted nothing more than to go back to bed (assuming it wasn't booby trapped in there. Heaven only knows what other childish- but sadly effective- pranks Hanabi had set up.)

"I'm sorry, TenTen! But it is one of my purposes in life to protect her! I would be just as mad if you went out with Lee!"

Her normally large brown eyes got even wider and curious. "So what would you do about it?"

Neji froze. Could she possibly mean...? Was she...?

"Youthful TenTen and Neji! Come, we must begin our training for today!"

Neji was horrified. But then why would TenTen care if he liked his cousin or not? Not like he did, ew, ew, ew, cousins, but still! He actually, really liked TenTen. She was quite pretty, even when she was mad. And he'd thought she distrusted Spandex too. He was slightly disappointed in her. But, if she'd said yes, then _he_ wasn't going to interfere.

He was horrified as he turned around to stare at Lee, trying to figure out if they really were going out. He also wanted to ignore him.

"So what would you care if I liked Lady Hinata or not? I don't, but now I want to know, _youthful_ TenTen," he growled. "I'm quite curious to hear your answer to that."

"Hmph." She glared at the ground, previously wide eyes narrow with anger, and cheeks pink..._ Presumably with anger as well_, he thought.

"What do you mean?"

She walked up to Lee.

Women!

Neji's day was _so_ not going well.

"Well, _sorry_," he managed. He cursed at himself in his head. Couldn't he have thought of something… more witty? Then he remembered something. "And you still haven't answered my question."

"Hmph," she said, walking away.

Her eyes glittered when she was mad, he realized. It was actually quite pretty.

"Do you still want me to train with you guys?" he asked.

"Sure! Join the YOUTHFULNESS!"

Neji's mouth formed a grimace involuntarily.

"Yeah, Neji. Come and be youthful!" yelled a still angry TenTen.

How could she _stand_ it, going out with Lee? And why not Neji? What had he done in all his 18 years to merit such a bad-karma filled day? Did he kick puppies? Did he take candy from small children on their birthdays? Did he rip arms off of teddy bears, then feed the teddy bear innards to angry and hungry Rottweilers in front of the children who owned them?

No.

But he was Hyuuga Neji, master of the Byakugan. And he was going to make the best of this terrible day. He mentally shook himself of all doubts and self-pity and _weakness_.

He, as Hyuuga Neji, was far too grown up and independent to go running after the couple (he shuddered) like a little puppy, so he walked at his own pace to the training grounds. Unfortunately, Gai was there.

Well, he thought to himself, of course Gai was there. Gai was always there. Gai was their teacher. Duh. It stood to reason that he would train with them.

"Ah! Neji and TenTen and my youthful student Lee! Let us embrace what is left of the morning and TRAIN!!!!"

"Gai-sensei! Your words truly move me!" yelled Lee.

_Honestly_, thought Neji, _all he needs are tears flowing from his eyes. This picture will be complete. Too bad it's morning, 'cause they need a sunset on the beach for this picture._

Looking over at TenTen, who was ignoring the scene, he wondered how she could really love this Beautiful Green Beast enough to go out with him. Urgh.

Really. And why not Neji?

_I'm nice,_ he thought. _Generally. I like her. I'm not stupid. Granted, I'm not talkative, but that's okay, because she likes to talk. And she's not stupid._

What did Lee have that he didn't (other than Spandex and absurd training methods)?

Maybe…

Neji had a horrifying thought. Maybe she liked the Spandex?

"TenTen…" he said timidly. Wait, what was he thinking? The Great Neji Hyuuga, Master of the Byakugan Eye of the Great and Powerful Hyuuga Clan, did _not_ ask things timidly. Rather, he asked them _quietly_. Yes, there was most definitely a difference. This day was really getting to him. He began again.

"TenTen…" he began quietly. "Really, what is it you like about Lee? I mean… it's not the Spandex, right?"

She looked at him funny. "What are you talking about? I don't like Lee because of his Spandex! I like him because he's fun to be around. He likes to talk. And he's not that bad. Grow up a little, Neji. He's a good person and you of all people should recognise that. Why are you asking me that?"

What? Neji? Grow up? TenTen was older than him, he knew, but… still… He frowned. If TenTen said so… He really admired her. In fact, he loved her. She had faults, but they were cute. And TenTen acted younger than him. What was she talking about? Grow up? Neji could not think of a reply he could word well. So he tried his best.

"Hn."

"Hyuuga Neji, you're never going to get it if you don't try."

Worst. Day. Ever. Neji could feel his self control slipping.

"My youthful love TenTen! Come! We must spar in order to become better ninjas!"

"Bye, Neji." Hinata had dated Shino.

TenTen was dating Lee.

Neji was going to kill Shino.

But he couldn't bring himself to do anything to Lee.

_I mean, the kid worked so hard… However cruel I want to be… I would feel terrible hurting him. Plus, TenTen loves him. Now, Shino, I can hurt him. He'll recover. Plus, Hinata didn't really love him. But Lee… TenTen loves Lee… And Lee won fair and square. So I really can't…in good sportsmanship._

He cursed the heavens. As an ANBU-in-training, he wasn't supposed to feel mercy.

But today, Lee was spared.

Neji shocked himself so much by this that he forgot to pay attention to the ground and tripped over a rock.

Now his entire front side hurt. He lay face down on the ground. Neji decided it wasn't worth it to move today.

"HEY, EVERYONE! NEJI DIED!" yelled the world's most obnoxious and colorblind ninja.

"No, I didn't die, Naruto," corrected Neji from his spot face-down on the ground, curse-mark resting on elbow.

"NEVER MIND!"

"I think a hello is in order. Hello."

"Hi, Neji," said Naruto. "Listen, about the whole Neji-is-dead thing… sorry about that…" Neji could almost hear him grinning sheepishly. Actually, when he checked with his Byakugan, he was right. Naruto's face was the very image of apologetic sheepishness

"That's fine, Naruto. I happened to trip. And I didn't feel like bothering to get up."

"Oh. Well, I was about to go get lunch. Wanna come with?"

"Who's paying?"

"Well… would you… at least for your part?"

"Sure. Why not?" groaned Neji. He was hungry.

"ALRIGHT!!" yelled the brightly clad ninja. "I'm bringing Hinata too. Cuz I think she'd like it. Are you okay with that?"

Neji could only grin evilly inside. He would finally be able to talk to Hinata. This was good.

"Yes. I need to talk to Hinata."

"OOOOOOOOH! What for, Neji? Do you need to ask her out?"

Cousins! Hello! Neji wanted to tear his hair out at the very idea that he would love his _cousin_. Ew. Did no one else realize how _gross_ this was? Did no one else have cousins of the opposite gender that they could possibly relate this situation to? Haha. Relate… relations. Neji realized he'd made a pun. He considered whether to groan at the idiocy of it or be amazed that he thought of something that might be considered funny. He groaned (Hyuuga Neji, Master of the Byakugan, was to cool to be amazed).

"Ha-ha-ha no."

He glared at Naruto.

"Sorry…"

"We're cousins."

"I know."

"I would never date my cousin. I am simply assigned the task of protecting her for the rest of my life. But we are not _attached_ in any way."

"Oh." Naruto's face brightened. "Well, can I date her then? I really like her."

Neji really did not mind the boy. He really didn't. In fact, of anyone in Konoha, Naruto would be the most capable of caring for and protecting Hinata when Neji couldn't (and the other candidate to which Neji would trust Hinata with was Gaara the now-stable-and-sand-controlling boy capable of an ultimate defense second only to Neji's.). But not today. He was not going to give away the girl he'd come to protect like a precious only daughter on the very worst day of his life.

"Not right now, Naruto. Not today. Maybe tomorrow."

"Well, what makes tomorrow different from today?" asked a confused Naruto.

Oh, no. Maybe today and tomorrow were not going to be different days. Maybe tomorrow would be just as bad. Oh, heaven forbid.

Neji couldn't take being outside one second longer.

"Maybe nothing. I don't know. But I just remembered. I need to go home now."

"Oh. Ok. Maybe some other time then. See ya later, Neji!" yelled Naruto, who then ran off to Ichiraku's.

Neji walked up slowly to the front door of his small house. He checked the place for any traps, then looked at the bottoms of his feet.

"Ew," he remarked. They were blackened with dirt and had greenish grass stains. And his house had white carpeting. Not to mention his slippers he usually used were a kind of pale blue color upon which dirt would show. Oh, well. Better on the slippers that were more easily washed than the carpet floor. He looked around. No slippers. Hanabi was dead. He leaned his head against the door frame. What to do. He could just walk inside, then clean up later. He decided upon that choice.

He went to go wash his feet in the shower, and decided that he would just wash his feet, something that only required him to sit on the side(fully clothed.) Upon doing so, he noticed that his shampoo(upon noticing a change of position from where it had been when he'd last taken a shower) had been replaced with… glue, he thought, and his soap was… pink and sparkly and smelled like bubble gum. He couldn't find a washcloth, but instead discovered something that scared him when he first saw it. It was pink and fluffy and round and made of netting, with a loop of cord tied onto it. When he first saw it, he thought it was some kind of… mold, maybe? Or some unknown species. Either way, he'd jumped back(getting water all over the floor when he fell off of where he was sitting on the side of the bathtub) and then looked at it with his Byakugan. It wasn't alive, which was good. But it was… really weird. However, he found it quite useful in place of a washcloth. Kinda like those dish sponges made of metal. But pink. And kind of girly.

He wanted his stuff back, though. That had been really good, expensive shampoo. And the Great Neji Hyuuga, Master of the Byakugan, could not ever be associated with the pink soap and fluffy thing he was currently using to scrub the bottoms of his feet.

Although it was quite good revenge to actually use the fluffy thing, he figured. Hanabi would have to go buy a new one now. He was quite certain she wouldn't want one he had used. And the soap, too. For added payback and horror on her part, he might dye it green later. That would certainly scare her away from any future Neji pranking sprees.

When he finished, he dried off his feet and went to go find lunch.

His cupboards were empty. And not just regular empty. But dry, bare, dust bunnies roamed free kind of empty. He was certain they had been moderately stocked this morning.

"Hanabi…" he growled.

He must have really ticked her off. Had he done anything else?

Oh… there was that time last week when he'd stepped on her computer. But it had seemed to be fine! Really! And then… oh yeah, he'd teased her about… something… he didn't remember what, though. Maybe something to do with her hair? Oh… and maybe she was taking into account that time he'd let her bird free… but it had come back, hadn't it? And then that time that he'd picked up her book and closed it and she'd lost her place… but he didn't do that on purpose. He just didn't like to see the spines of books break because people left them upside down.

He'd apologized all those times. Really. He had. But what could be making her so mad now?

He went to the fridge to look for lunch. Empty too. Curses.

So… where should he go for lunch? He stepped outside of his house, dirtying his feet again. He gave up on that thought and turned his thoughts toward lunch.

He decided upon Ichiraku's. It had been a while since he'd seen Naruto, and maybe everyone would be gone.

He went.

They weren't.

"WOOHOO! APRIL FOOLED YA, KIBA!" yelled Naruto.

"Actually, Naruto… you got me. Good one, man! Gotta pull that one on Shino!" said Kiba, all good sportsmanship-like.

So it was April 1st. Huh. He ignored that fact (as it was irrelevant to his current problems) and ordered chicken ramen, ate it as fast as he could, and left for home again. Lee and TenTen walked by, and he ignored them. So did Hinata and Shino.

Hinata! He needed to talk to her. But not with Shino around.

"Lady Hinata," he said, walking up to her. "I need to talk to you. But it can wait," he added, on account of Shino's presence. "I'll come by later." He glared at Shino, just for good measure, and then walked off.

Hinata shrugged.

"Okay, Neji-nii-san. See y-you l-l-later," she called after him.

The nerve of that girl. How dare she? He saw red for a few moments, whilst thinking about that bug-boy and how his shy little cousin had dared to go out with him and NOT tell him. She was going to get a lecture from him. He was so mad that he missed the little kid who threw his ball into the middle of the street.

It hit Neji in the face. He hadn't noticed, so he couldn't dodge.

The little kid stood at the side of the road. "Sorry, mister."

Neji couldn't be mad at a little kid like that. What was he, four?

Neji Hyuuga was not so high and mighty that he'd beat up some little kid for hitting him in the face with the ball.

So he gave the little kid back his ball, with a stern admonition to not throw it into the street, and stormed off angrily to plan his lecture to Lady Hinata.

Not to mention he activated his Byakugan in case of any traps.

* * *

Likey? 

I hope so, 'cuz I think it was better than the first chapter.

I take back my earlier statement. Five fabulous people reviewed and I am very grateful to them. They totally made my day. And I have so many hits now- more than 22, more like 100! I'm amazed.


	3. Lake Hyuuga

twitching... arrrrrrgh I hate what I did in the last chapter! I'm sorry! I'll fix it!

It's NejiTen!!!! I promise it!!! Don't hate me! It will all be okay eventually! Ex-Girl-Scout Honor!

Plus if you have been reading this, for those of you who put me on alert/favorited me (you guys made my day, by the way), you should go back and read the other chapters... because I whenever I write, even if I have a specific plot, it almost always changes somewhere, sometimes even multiple times. But right now I think I have it all worked out... but wait, it's still not making sense... It will work out in the end, though. And I also fixed the mistake that Drummer-Blossom brought up... Hiashi is the head of clan, not Hizashi. Thank you very much! This is not an AU, Hizashi is dead... Well, Hiashi is very friendly towards Neji, and Neji is overprotective of Hinata. And friendly to Hiashi. Maybe it is an AU...

Gaara says, "The fangirl writing this is just that, a fangirl. Fangirls do not own manga. "

* * *

Neji stomped off, thinking about what he would say to that traitorous and caution-free cousin of his. Geez. How could she sneak around him like that? It was her safety he was worried about, after all. Honestly. And, of course, as the future _head of clan_ she was, she could not afford to pull stunts like this all the time. It was her that would be the well-known leader of one of the oldest and most noble clans of Konoha. And it was her that would be out in the public eye. For one thing, she needed to let him know. As her bodyguard, he was entitled to know who she was dating. He needed to know where she'd be. 

_Yeah, right, Neji. _He scoffed at himself. _You're just worried about your little cousin. And then there's TenTen…_

He was really, really mad right now, but he tried to control it. He managed to get home safely, without any general mishaps, although that one girl managed to bump into him (okay, maybe it was the other way around). Who was she again? Pink hair… green eyes… super strength… He flinched as he recalled the punch to his face. That had hurt. He touched the tip of his nose to make sure it was in the correct place. She had said she'd healed it, but…

Neji knew his nose, and it appeared to be all right. She'd also said that it might be slightly discolored from the bruising and all, but it wouldn't hurt and the discoloration, if any, would go away within a day. He briefly wondered what kind of discoloration, and how much was slightly. It had been kind of scary the way that she'd said it. No! Neji Hyuuga, Master of the Byakugan, did not get scared of measly things like pink-haired super-strong kunoichi (he just remembered her name. It was Sakura Haruno. Yes, that was it) telling him his nose might be a different color when he saw it next! Neji Hyuuga had been… had been…

He gave up on finding a description other than "fear" and dismissed the thought as something his mind had just spewed out in a brief flash of insanity. His thoughts turned back to his lecture.

It was going quite well.

He planned to give her a few hours and if she wasn't home by then, he was going to wait for her.

He continued walking to the Hyuuga complex. It was quite a ways away from Ichiraku's. He liked the long walk, though. It helped him calm down, because he'd been spitting mad when he'd left that restaurant. Now he was just ticked off. Mildly.

That is, until he found all the sinks were on (drains plugged with goopy stuff). And the bathtub (drain also plugged there, too). And the hose in the back. Water flowed everywhere, forming placid lakes and rivers wherever possible. Neji, for a brief moment actually thought it had a cool effect, kinda calm and mirror-like wherever one looked. He kind of liked it. But that didn't matter.

Hiashi was going to _kill_ him. Dead. No matter that he'd started to like Neji nearly as his own son, no matter that Neji was the pride and hope for the Hyuugas. No matter that Neji was a genius. No matter that Neji was Hiashi's late brother's son, said late brother having died for Hiashi.

Neji was _dead meat_. Hiashi paid his water bill. And for any repairs to Neji's house, which rarely happened, but this was _big_.

He ran around frantically (no, no, not frantically, Neji Hyuuga, Master of the Byakugan, did not run _frantically_, he ran _fast_ and looked _cool_ and _intelligent_ doing so), turning off all the water appliances. Then he had to figure out how to get rid of the water.

He sank into his couch, after having applied and soaking all the towels he owned on one of the two bathrooms, the smallest one. There was still the downstairs one, which was much bigger and had a larger puddle in it because of the shallower sink and bath, and then there was the kitchen sink. The kitchen sink, one of those nice ones that had the head part come out and could be sprayed over many dishes at once, had had the cord fully stretched and over the counter, so that there was no need to plug the drain and wait for the sink to fill, the water went straight onto the floor.

He owned about five towels. He lived alone! He didn't need that many towels! And he had about two kitchen-use hand towels! It wasn't like he ate much at home, anyway, except breakfast, so he didn't need to wash too many dishes.

And using paper towels on something of that size was like trying to plug up a hose with a pinhead.

Speaking of pinheads, isn't the human body full of enough space that if it was all crammed together, it would be the size of the head of a pin?

Once he got a hold of Hanabi, he vowed to make sure that if anyone ever wanted to see her, they'd need to use a microscope.

He walked into the den, as there was no source of water there, and he could briefly relax.

However, once he got in, he remembered that he'd had one of those water cooler things in there, and since Hanabi knew it was there, she'd probably opened that up, too.

She had. He left. Maybe the Main House would grant him mercy and a few towels. After he sternly lectured Hinata.

He forced himself to walk calmly, carefully, placidly over to the Main House's living quarters.

Once he arrived, Hiashi opened the door. He decided he didn't want to inform Hiashi of his daughter's misdeeds yet.

"Neji! How are you?" He offered his hand out.

"Hi, Hyuuga-sama. I'm fine, thanks, how're you?"

"I'm just fine. But your nose… Is it okay?"

Neji steeled himself, then asked, "What color is it?"

The Great Leader of the Hyuuga Clan answered, "It's greenish-purplish-blue."

Neji sighed. "I got punched."

"I see."

"And the medic said there might be slight discolorations."

"They lied. Sorry, but that's not slight."

"Thank you for your truthfulness."

"So, Hinata said you wanted to talk to her? She's in the back training, and she planned on starting dinner in an hour. Good luck, boy. And good choice. I think she's turned out well. And you're definitely better than that Shino kid she was dating earlier. So-"

"I don't want to date Hinata. I just need to talk to her about something," Neji said, trying to not blow up with rage in front of someone who could inflict pain on him at any moment with a simple hand seal. "I also need her help with something."

"Well, okay then." Hiashi let him past, and Neji thanked his lucky stars the conversation had not gone on any longer. He was starting to feel insulted that even Hiashi had known, and he hadn't.

Neji walked through the long Hyuuga house halls and thought over what he was going to say. He then realized that it would be a good idea to either lecture her or ask for help. Not both.

He decided to lecture her. He would ask for Lee's help- well, no, he didn't want Lee inside his house. Nor Naruto- though his kage bunshins would probably be really helpful.

Who was rich and could help? That he would feel comfortable asking?

Well, TenTen, but he was kind of mad at her, and she was mad at him.

He decided to risk it. She was, after all, excepting Hinata, the only one of the people he knew that he'd let into his house. And she, although not the best if one wanted to get rid of water, would probably be able to think of something if she saw it. She was smart.

So why was she going out with Lee again?

His mind turned back to the lakes and streams he'd left flowing through his house.

Neji suddenly remembered that large amounts of water left alone in one spot for long amounts of time caused problems. Problems Hiashi would probably have to pay for. Problems that he would get busted for.

He turned around and left the Hyuuga house, passing Hiashi with a quick, "I forgot that I have to do-" his mind whirled for an excuse- "a training lesson with Lee and Gai today," he finished, thanking every deity he could think of that it was a lie.

Wait... That was so wrong.

He didn't have time to over-analyze it like he would have normally, although it was probably... what would one call that?

He gave up on that.

* * *

Neji looked around town for her. As he looked, he tried to figure out what Lee had that he didn't. 

It was not looks or style, he knew that much. His eyebrows... and Spandex... not to mention the whole forehead-protector-at-waist. Did that mean his brain was in his stomach? (He cringed inwardly, remembering a very scary incident that involved curry.) That might make sense. And it wasn't humor... Lee wasn't funny.

Maybe he was... nice and friendly and outgoing. Oh, wait, that was what TenTen had said that morning.

Duh.

Neji wasn't, and he knew it. He just saw no point in talking to people unless absolutely necessary.

He tried to think about what he would say to TenTen when he found her. He thought she might be at home or the training grounds. They were on opposite sides of Konoha. He decided to check her home first. It was closer.

She wasn't there.

He sighed and began the long trek to the training grounds. Just his luck she wouldn't be at home.

* * *

TenTen hurled a kunai at the target, pretending it was Neji. For some reason he'd been mad at her all day. 

He'd started to be mad right after her "So what would you do about it?" comment. Something clicked.

"Oh... no... he couldn't possibly think..." She gasped.

He must have thought she was going out with Lee!

That wasn't what she'd meant at all! She'd meant... Something else entirely. She'd been asking him what he would do if she was. What he would say. Not that she _was._

She'd just meant that he was being the world's most overprotective guy and he should just stop! Not that she was going out with Lee!

Oh. That explained the sudden silence, the whole "What do you like about Lee?" thing, and all that. And when she'd answered...

She was mad at him, however. After all, he'd seemed so revolted when he'd voiced the thought of her and Lee going out.

Well, she couldn't actually blame him. Lee was so totally opposite to Neji in everything. But it was mean. After all, she liked Lee (if not his Spandex). He was nice to people (unlike Neji). He was talkative (unlike Neji). He was an enthusiastic teammate (unlike Neji).

Of course... She didn't _like _Lee... she liked him! As a friend. Strictly platonic. As was, apparently, Neji and Hinata's relationship.

And of course she'd gotten all mad over that.

She'd never really pictured herself as the jealous type. She cringed and threw another kunai.

"Geez, TenTen, you shouldn't be all jealous of one of your best friends," she muttered to herself. Oh, shoot. How was she going to tell Neji she wasn't dating Lee? Maybe she could stage a false breakup with Lee so she wouldn't have to tell him. No. She threw some more kunai and a few shuriken. A flash of light behind the target, away off in the distance, startled her, and she missed the target completely, instinctively aiming for the flash. There was something there, and it was coming towards her. The kunai, however, was flying towards it.

A figure ducked out of the way just in time, ducking behind the target.

"TenTen! It's me!" yelled Neji.

TenTen cringed. Oops. The flash of light was his forehead protector that he frequently wore over his bandages. Duh.

* * *

"TenTen! It's me!" yelled Neji, in fear that she'd try to attack him. Then they'd have to waste time getting him healed, and he needed his house fixed _now_. Hiashi might come over to invite him to dinner anytime soon. After all, it was 4:30. 

"Um... Neji?" asked TenTen, her face reddening. "I thought you were mad at me... I'm sorry... Um... I kind of misunderstood what you were saying... And I... I kind of said..."

Neji, much as he wanted to hear what TenTen was saying, really, really needed her to come with him. Now. Hiashi always came around five or so to invite him to dinner at six, and he really needed to get his house clean by then.

"TenTen?" asked Neji. "I'm really, really sorry, that I said all those things. I'm sorry I was so rude about your boyfriend." And he was. If TenTen loved Lee, then he was just going to have to be nice to him. That was all there was to it. For TenTen's sake.

He couldn't believe he, Neji Hyuuga, had even allowed such a mushy, happy, warm, and fuzzy thought to get a map to his mind, let alone cross it. TenTen turned even pinker. If it were any other time, he'd laugh (she looked like the girl from the younger classes... the perpetually pink-cheeked one).

"Neji! Um... About that... Lee and I... "

Okay, now he really, really wanted to hear what she was saying.

"Okay, what, TenTen?"

"Well... I kind of... didn't mean that Lee and I were dating. I just meant... what would you do if I was... I didn't mean it like I was."

What? That made _no _sense. He didn't get it. But she said Lee and TenTen weren't dating.

"I was just so mad... you were being so mean to Lee. I meant... like... So what would happen if I was? What would you do about it? Would you do the same thing to Hinata and Shino? I guess when I'm mad... I don't make sense..." she trailed off.

And for a moment, Neji thought it made sense.

"I kind of meant that... oh, never mind," she said. She straightened up, looked him right in the eye (although she was still looking a little embarrassed and nervous) "I'm sorry. I didn't think that you would take it like that. I'm not dating Lee. I just worded something carelessly. Please forgive me."

Neji realized that he should have just asked if she was dating Lee. Then they would have avoided this whole mess.

He figured if she apologized, he had better, too.

"I'm sorry. I should have just asked, rather than assume it. So please forgive me, too."

"Of course," she said, relaxing. "So, was there any particular reason you came?"

Neji tried to decide whether he would tell her here. No time. "I'll tell you on the way to my house. I kind of... messed up," he said.

"Was it illegal?" asked TenTen suspiciously, but chipper now. Neji could only assume it was because they were talking again, or the fact that he'd said he messed up. Maybe a combination of both. "Because if it's illegal, I don't want to be an accomplice. I would call the cops if it was, you know. Especially if it's a major crime. You know, you kinda sound like you commited a murder." She gasped, eyes wide. "Neji, did you kill Lee? I mean, I'm sorry if I made you think we were going out, but you didn't have to _kill _him. What's Guy going to say? You are so dea-" Neji raked his fingers through his long black hair, noting with some displeasure that it was kind of sticking out on one side, and cut off TenTen before she really did call the cops. Or finish the last word of her sentence.

"I did not kill Lee, no matter how much he sang this morning. I left my door unlocked when I left today, and Hanabi happens to be rather mad at me. And I will explain on the way. At my house."

"Okay, Neji. But what did she do?"

"I don't have much time. Hiashi should be coming over soon and if he comes in, he will be mad. Come _on_. I will tell you on the way."

TenTen sighed and followed him. The second they took off, TenTen asked, "What did she do?"

Neji pushed his hair out of his face in an effeminate gesture. "She plugged up all the sinks and turned on all the taps. Including the bathtub. There's water everywhere."

TenTen laughed until she saw Neji's face, the expression on which caused her to hit a branch. Neji caught her.

"It's not funny," he growled. "If my uncle sees it, I'm dead."

"I just can't believe that."

"Yeah, well, you didn't see it. Do you know how I can get rid of it?"

"Well... Hinata has a jutsu that can control some water. I saw her practice it once." Neji vaguely remembered hearing about it.

He also remembered... Something else. Something Naruto had said... what was it? Some girl performing a dance on a river that made the water spin around her. He decided to ask TenTen.

"Hey, TenTen, I remember Naruto talking about that once. He said he'd seen some... pretty girl perform a dance that made the water spin around her. On a river, late at night. I remember everyone else had told him it was a dream. It was that one mission where Hinata came back and was very happy. You don't think..."

"Oh. Huh. Maybe. We should ask her about that sometime."

"Like she'd tell us." Neji was suddenly aware of the noun "us." "Well, maybe she'd tell you."

"But I don't know how much water she can control. Towels, of course, would help too."

"I don't have too many towels."

"I bet Hinata has some."

"Oh, I was going to lecture her about Shino..." Neji remembered that suddenly. "Do we have to ask her for help?"

"Yes, we do. Of course, there's always Naruto and his kage bunshins. And Lee with his super-speed and super strength. He could probably carry multiple buckets of water and do so very fast."

"I don't want either of them in my house."

"I can see your point, Neji. But they can behave."

"My house is up ahead. We have to be careful. I don't think Hiashi would be too happy about me bringing a girl home."

"Well... It's not like..." She blushed.

"Yeah, well, you know adults..." Neji looked away too and tried to fight facial redness as well.

They neared the house and dropped down in front of it. Neji opened the door for TenTen, who stepped inside. Neji was just about to go inside, attempting to ignore the gasp-and-expletive combinatioTn shot from her mouth when he saw a certain long-haired head of clan rounding a corner. He muttered, "Lord Hiashi's here. Wait inside," and shut the door on a shocked TenTen. He heard little splashes as she walked through the house, then finally saw with his Byakugan her sitting on a couch.

"Neji-kun! Nephew, how are you?" yelled his uncle.

"Just fine, thank you. How are you?" Neji's uncle was bordering on informal, as was Neji. But Neji was farther, if only a little, on the formal side. Pure habit, as the lowly Branch member some clan elders saw him as. He found it harder to be informal, even to a nearly identical genetic copy of his father.

"I'm fine as well. As I'm sure you know by now, you're welcome to dinner! That's all. Oh, and if you have any .friends with you..." His eyes shifted towards the couch TenTen was sitting on- something only another owner of the Byakugan can see, most people just see white. Byakugan users can also get away with rolling their eyes, and not be accused of having an "attitude." Even though most of them did. "If you have any friends with you, they are welcome as well." He smiled, and Neji, feeling somewhat sheepish (an unnerving feeling that he would now seek to avoid at all costs), saw he meant no ill will. "She's pretty, isn't she? I can't see her face, but she looks friendly. I can't imagine why you needed to hide her. In fact, may I meet her?"

Neji tried his hardest, harder than he'd ever tried at anything before, to fight the evil color that was red from staining his cheeks, a clear sign to all to "Look at Neji! He's uncomfortable! Someone has bested him!"

"Of course you can meet her. I just... Okay..." He opened the door. "Um... Hiashi saw you... You can come out..."

She got up off the couch, and walked to the door.

"I don't bite," said Hiashi. "What's your name?" Neji was grateful that he sounded friendly.

"I'm TenTen."

"I'm... Well, you can call me Hiashi, I guess. I would say Mr. Hyuuga, but there are far too many of them here."

"Nice to meet you," they said, and shook hands.

"Well, you look friendly, do you know my daughter Hinata?" asked Hiashi. Neji watched them talk, feeling rather useless and almost nervous.

More unnerving feelings. He'd never felt... useless before. But here he just stood silently, and although he was glad, this was probably one of the best moments of the day, he wasn't doing anything. He tried to think. He didn't usually feel useless when he wasn't talking...

He decided he didn't like it, and tried to look as though he were important.

He knew he must have failed miserably.

"Yes, I know Hinata. We've spoken. We've also trained a little bit. She's a good person. A good shinobi."

"She has really improved, I think."

"She fights well."

Silence, which made Neji's brain work overtime.

No, he did not like this at all. It was nerve-wracking, watching and thinking that perhaps they might not get along.

Hiashi looked at Neji. "Have you seen Hanabi today, Neji? I haven't seen her since she left early this morning. I thought she might have come here. I heard her mutter something about you as she was leaving this morning."

"Um..." Neji could not believe that he'd just let that foul word cross his lips. That word, "um" meant that he was needing time to think. This was a result of that evil cursed feeling of nervousness.

Intelligent prodigies needed virtually no time to think.

"No, I haven't seen her." He and TenTen looked at one another. TenTen was clearly thinking about telling Hiashi. Neji, on the other hand, did not want to inform a man who could cause his brain to hurt with a single hand seal that his beloved, promising daughter had spent a lot of her day wrecking his house.

"Huh. That look you guys exchanged just now... I haven't seen my beloved daughter all day. I can take back a dinner invitation. I am getting kind of worried. Hanabi is rather young. Because of the fact that we might have given her the title of head of clan, when she was younger, we didn't put the seal on her head. To this day, I haven't done that. If she is kidnapped... And if you are withholding information... I will be very angry, Neji, at you and your friend," said the father in front of him, Byakugan activated. Neji knew this was for show. "And I will know if you are lying." Yes, just for show. Byakugan users can sense lies without an activated Bloodline. Activating it just makes it more obvious, and more terrifying to the person being interrogated.

"She's been playing pranks on him all day!" blurted out TenTen. Neji glared at her.

He was _so _dead. He also had not wanted to go running to Hanabi's dad. Doing so would have seemed so... childish. Like he couldn't handle it.

"I could've handled it, TenTen, Lord Hiashi," he muttered.

"Oh, is that it?" asked Hiashi, smiling with relief. "I was really getting worried. Thank you for telling me. But how bad is your house doing?"

"Not badly," lied Neji, looking straight at Hiashi.

"Oh, really? Hanabi can be quite destructive. Is that it?"

"Pfft! As if! She turned on all the sinks and plugged the drains. It's like a lake in there! That's why I'm here. Neji asked me for help."

"Which I shouldn't have done."

"Well, now he knows! It's a good thing, Neji."

"That's what _you _think."

"No, actually it is a good thing, Neji. I need to get her back here. May I see this 'lake'?"

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes. Please come in, Mr. Hiashi," said TenTen, opening the door and gesturing for him to step inside.

"You are so gracious, Ms. TenTen," said Hiashi, bowing and stepping in.

"Unlike _some _people," she said, glaring at Neji, who was sulking.

"Hn," he grunted, expressing his displeasure. Really, this did not help. Neither did Hiashi's swearing, as he stepped inside.

"Language, Lord Hiashi." Neji may not have been formal, but he could joke with his uncle.

He was laughing at Hiashi's reaction until he stepped inside.

The sinks were flowing again (something that neither Neji nor TenTen had noticed, neither having stepped far enough into the house to hear it or see it). Across the wall was scribbled "Neji + TenTen LURV!!!"

"Oh, my," said TenTen. "Um, no."

Hiashi was fuming.

But Neji missed Hiashi's furious reply when he saw what was taped up on the other wall. It was... the most childish prank he'd yet seen.

* * *

Gasp! It's a... Cliffhanger! 

I will post up the next chapter soon.

Unless I, you know, die of laughter at Deidara's art in the last page of chapter 362.

I swear, that thing makes me laugh SO hard! It's like a giant uberchibi waving its arms around maniacally!

Um... It was 2:30 in the morning when I wrote that, but it's 10:00 in the morning and it still amuses me so I think I'll keep it there...

Just review. I like it (and thank you to those who have reviewed!!!!). It's nice to read when people say nice things to me. It's also nice when they correct me, so if I did anything wrong, let me know.

* * *


	4. And Lee Is In On It Too?

Lotsa NejiTen in this chapter. Most of it is Neji admiring TenTen (and the rest is TenTen forcing him to do demeaning things, like _apologize_... gasp!), which I don't know if I like, because I don't know if Neji would do that. Mostly because I'm not a guy. And I don't know if they sit around admiring girls that they like with thought like "She's so pretty."

I know girls do that...

And now for a disclaimer!

"Thank Kishimoto-sensei she doesn't really own us," Shikamaru and Deidara say in unison. Gaara and Neji nod their heads in agreement (because I really don't know what they would say in this situation. Probably nothing).

* * *

Neji looked at _it_, that evil picture, and without a word, not even a four-letter one or any variant of such, tried to rip _it _down. Upon discovering _it _would not rip down easily, he endeavored to find out why. He discovered there really wasn't tape on _it, _it had only looked like it. Then how was _it _staying up? He looked at the back, and found... sticky stuff. Little squares of sticky stuff that had the color of pasteurized cheese-product, like the nacho-cheese dip-stuff that came in big cans in the store, and the texture of... sponges. Compressed sponges. Sticky compressed sponges. 

The picture came off the stuff, but the pasteurized-cheese-sponge-stuff did not come off the wall without a fight.

Neji vowed to fight that battle until _all _the pictures were down.

Luckily, TenTen was still occupied with the Neji + TenTen equals LUV!!! or whatever sign on the other wall.

Unfortunately, Neji made a noise half-between a choke-cough and a snort when seeing a certain picture that involved a top-hat.

He felt the evil, terrible, red color coming to his face again and turned towards the wall. Perhaps he could hide these pictues from TenTen. He tried, stretched out using every bit of baggy cloth he could to hide pictures. TenTen started to giggle at Neji's antics.

"What's on the wall, Neji?" she asked. "Can I see?"

"No. Uncle Hiashi," said Neji calmly. "Please bring me a large wooden board. Now."

* * *

TenTen thought Neji's pose made for an amusing sight. 

She had to admit to herself, though, he was taking it rather well. Granted, his face was bright red, and granted, he was attacking that orangey stuff all over the wall where he'd ripped off a picture, but he really was taking it well. She still couldn't see the pictures, though, Neji was attempting in a very valiant and successful effort to hide them all from view. A very tricky task, but he seemed to be doing well. She tried to edge past him to see, but he moved. She cursed the Byakugan and all its powers. Hiashi, who happened to be able to see through Neji and the large wooden board, was having a very uncharacteristic laughing fit in the corner, after retrieving said wooden board when Neji requested one and sliding it in between Neji and the wall so the pictures would stay hidden. TenTen was dying to find out what the pictures- or whatever he was ripping off the wall, but judging by the look on Neji's face and the paper, they were very embarrassing pictures of... something.

She tried to look at the tidily stacked pile of pictures on the kitchen table, but Neji shot her a Death Glare and she decided it was in her best interests not to pursue that particular object of curiousity. At least until his face faded back to its normal state of paleness.

Meanwhile, she amused herself with thoughts of what the pictures could be. Illustrations from that book... what was it? Oh, yeah, Icha Icha. It could be... Ponies. Oh, yes, Neji would hate to have ponies all over his walls. Especially if he liked them. That would explain it.

A wind blew in from the open window (TenTen noticed that it was starting to get rather cloudy outside), causing the upside-down paper on the top to float off the pile and onto the floor. TenTen looked down just in time to see a rather embarrassing-looking picture of Baby Neji with... was that underwear on his head?

She couldn't help it. Neji Hyuuga, prodigy of his clan and master of the Byakugan, Jounin, and various other titles that showed his dedication, not to mention his status as the most... somber person anyone had ever met (okay, except maybe that Shino kid from Hinata's team) and who could be a total jerk... had run around as a little kid with underwear on his head? She started to chuckle with Hiashi, who was wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

It was an adorable picture, too. _He'd been such a cute little kid_, she thought. She remembered their days at the academy and the wide-white-eyed Neji with long black hair who was intelligent but generally regarded as annoying, and when they'd become a team, she'd understood why.

That didn't stop her from liking the angry boy, though. Just as Lee's reputation for being an idiot didn't stop her from liking him.

Of course, she liked Neji a little bit more.

And she thought the picture she was holding was adorable.

Neji turned an interesting shade of crimson-pink after being frozen for a minute and went back to his work.

"I remember that," said Hiashi. "There are similar pictures of Hinata somewhere, but I don't remember what we did to her."

"Oh, so Neji didn't put it on his head of his own accord?" asked TenTen, laughing.

"I'm sorry to say that we were rather... amused with the thought of putting things on our kids' heads. Hizashi and I used to have such fun playing pranks on people like that, especially when we were little kids. You know how twins are sometimes. We also fully intended to embarrass our children as much as possible, and we needed _something_. Of course, my wife got mad, and so did Neji's mom... Neither of them thought it was funny. I really can't imagine why. That was before..." Hiashi stopped laughing, and sighed. TenTen thought he looked much older now than when he'd been laughing and happy before. "Of course, we always thought that we'd be the ones doing the embarrassing with those pictures, not Hanabi!" The smile returned to his face, and it reached his eyes, but TenTen could also see that he was very sad, too.

TenTen knew that Hinata's mother had died during Hanabi's birth, and Neji's kunoichi mother had died bravely fighting, according to Gai. From Neji she'd gathered that he'd been too young at the time to know either that well. These pictures probably brought back a few memories for them both.

Another thought occured to her. "Hiashi, are all the pictures this one?" she said, holding up the above-mentioned picture.

"_Yes_," said Neji.

"No," said Hiashi at the same time. "There are a few of Neji-" Neji flinched.

"Please don't!"

"As a really little kid."

Neji sighed. TenTen had no Byakugan, but she was certain that was a sigh of relief, and that on his face would be a matching expression.

* * *

Neji tried valiantly to cover up all the pictures, especially his _naked baby pictures_ that he was certain his late parents had taken only for the sadistic purpose of embarrassing him beyond anything Lee could do on missions. Why, oh why, did his father and Hiashi have to have such fun destroying their children's egos? 

"Your mother took those, Neji," Hiashi said as Neji worked on scratching off the yellow-cheese-sponge stuff off of one where he was clad in only a diaper and a stupid top hat. "She thought it was cute. Apparently you just found it, and put it on."

"Found what and put it on?" asked TenTen.

"A hat," said Neji, glaring at Hiashi through the back of his head, yet another thing only Byakugan users can do. He would _never _have put such a stupid looking hat on. Lies.

And TenTen might see these, which would be the worst embarrassment of his life. Diapers and a hat.

Hanabi was so dead. Really, he hadn't done such a bad thing, had he? _I mean, geez_, he said to himself. _I said I was sorry, didn't I? _ He could clearly remember afterwards apologizing to Hanabi for teasing her. _And it wasn't like it was that bad. Not bad enough to destroy my house, or completely embarrass me in front of TenTen. _

One thing, though. That wasn't Hanabi's writing on the wall. Plus, she didn't know TenTen all that well.

So who was _that_, anyway? Whoever it was had to be a total idiot. Stupid enough to tease him, Neji Hyuuga, master of Juuken.

Who on earth could that be? It had to be someone better than him (which narrowed it down to very few), or it had to be a complete and total moron.

That didn't narrow it down a lot.

He looked at the writing, albeit through the back of his head.

It was messy, scrawled hastily in marker that should come off, yes, looking at it closer he could tell it was washable marker. But he ought to get it off soon. He was trying to figure out whether he should ask TenTen to help him get it off when-

All of a sudden, they all saw a flash of light and heard thunder. As ninja, sudden unexpected sounds caused them to ready their battle stances. Neji, a ninja with superbly fast reactions to things, immediately abandoned his post as Guardian of Stupid Baby Pictures That Should Never Reach the Public Eye, and leaned back into Juuken stance, as Hiashi, although he was faster at it, did the same. TenTen had a hand on her scroll and her thumb to her mouth, ready to bite in case she needed to summon weapons.

Then they realized it was the weather.

"Well, at least we know we're ready if an enemy ninja comes," said Hiashi, laughing.

"Hn," said Neji, slightly embarrassed that he'd abandoned his post because of the _weather_. How lame is that? TenTen might have seen the stupid pictures, because he'd been holding the board in place... And all because he'd gotten a little freaked out at some thunder. He caught the board when it started to fall.

Neji hated the late-summer weather, which always changed at the drop of a hat.

Hats. He involuntarily glanced to another copy of the stupid-hat picture, and ripped it down forcefully.

"So, Neji... Did you talk to Hinata?" asked Hiashi. 

"No," said TenTen. "Which reminds me, what are we going to do about your house, Neji?"

They all suddenly remembered they were standing in a large puddle of water.

Neji was silent.

"Are there any water jutsu-users around here that you know?" asked Hiashi.

"Well, we do know someone that can control small amounts of water at a time," said TenTen.

Hiashi frowned. "Small amounts? Not really helpful here. I'm going to ground Hanabi for the rest of her life, but I bet the Main House can get it repaired fairly easily. I'll call someone straightaway. In fact, I think I'll do that right now. Neji, you don't have to repay me, as it wasn't you who caused it. So don't worry. I'll go now, and call a plumber or something. You might want to get your friend in here to start to clean it up, but it won't really help."

"Okay," said TenTen.

"Thanks," said Neji. Hiashi waved and left, splashing his way through the halls.

It was suddenly very quiet. Neji looked at TenTen, who was staring at the water until she looked up. She jumped, startled out of her thoughts, he guessed. "What time is it?" he asked.

"Um... Five-thirty."

"Thanks. Half an hour, then."

"Ok." She went back to staring at the ground, and he went back to ripping pictures. The clouds got darker outside, and it started look like rain.

He decided to ask TenTen about the wall. "TenTen? On that wall... That's not Hanabi's writing. She also doesn't know you that well."

"Oh? That's strange. Whose is it, then?"

"I don't know."

Suddenly something green, shiny, and energetic (and slightly wet from the rain) popped in through the front door and bounced its way down the hall, finally coming to a splashing stop in front of Neji and TenTen, spraying them unnecessarily with water. Another (bigger) green, shiny, and energetic something followed it to another unnecessary splashing stop and fully drenching the sane ones with water.

"It is I, Rock Lee! Your youthful teammate!" said Rock Lee, smile glinting like a toothpaste commercial, and hair shining so brightly from being wet that Neji had trouble looking at it.

"And it is I, Might Guy! Your sensei in the Springtime of Youth!" said Might Guy, smile shining like the top of the Chrysler Building, and hair glinting like the sun, practically making the room glow with light.

Neji and TenTen groaned inwardly. It had been so quiet and peaceful (and dim).

"Neji! You may not have noticed, but someone appears to have defaced your wall! I suggest you get rid of it, for it suggests some horrifying things about you and TenTen and makes crude assumptions about your relationship as teammates!"

"Oh, I noticed it all right." Neji looked at the ceiling, hoping that in the popcorn texturing was hidden the answer to all his questions, or at least it would explain how to get everyone out of his house. Or maybe why they thought he was so blind as to not notice the graffitied wall.

"But Guy-sensei-sir!" yelled Lee, looking abashed for no apparent reason. "It was I! Neji said that playing pranks on people was youthful!" Oh, well, that explained the sheepish expression.

"Well, that explains it. Thanks, Neji," muttered TenTen so only the Hyuuga prodigy could hear.

"Playing pranks is youthful?" asked Guy, shocked.

"Hai!" said Lee, saluting him.

"Well, we must leave and play pranks on various citizens of Konoha! Because we are in the Springtime of Youth!" Guy yelled heroically, as if the act of playing pranks was one which would save the universe.

_Wait_, Neji thought. _That wasn't really heroically. He always talks like that._

"TenTen! Will you not join us?" asked Lee politely, if not quietly.

"I'm sorry, guys, but I've got a dinner invitation, and I fear pranks will take too long."

"Neji! How about you?" asked Guy.

"Sorry, I've got to stick around here for a little while and fix this place," he said, indicating the wooden board.

"Ah! I was meaning to ask you about that, Neji. What business do you have that requires your wall covered up with a large wooden board? And those piles of pictures?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"May I see the pictures?" asked Lee.

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please? I swear I'll do whatever you say!"

"No."

"Okay, Lee! Let us go and participate in the youthful act of playing pranks upon the citizens of Konoha!" yelled Guy.

"Hooray!" yelled Lee, completely forgetting his earlier ambition to peek into the life of Baby Neji.

They left, splashing their way out the door and slamming it, leavingNeji and TenTen wincing at the noise.

"They're gone. Finally," sighed TenTen in relief.

"Thank heavens."

The silence, however, quickly grew dull and awkward, as Neji (now having removed all pictures and the board) moved on to removing orange-cheese stuff from his wall.

As Neji grew more absorbed into his tedious job, TenTen focused on the water and the silence was no longer awkward with the both of them lost in thought.

Neji's thoughts were more along the lines of: _Ugh... Why did Hanabi have to do this? Oh, she's going to be at dinner tonight. Shoot. What am I going to do? She's going to be weirder than usual. And then there's Hinata..._ He grew rather angry when he pictured them (Hinata and Shino) walking side by side, the way they had been earlier. Much too close. He felt rather like what he imagined an overprotective father would feel like, not that he was one. He was an overprotective cousin.

The kind of anger when he'd seen TenTen and Lee so close was a far cry from what he felt about Hinata. There he was mostly angry. Not angry and overprotective, but angry and annoyed.

Now that he knew that she wasn't dating Lee, he was going to ask her out. Just not today.

"Oh," said TenTen.

"Hn?" said Neji (showing off his impressive vocabulary as always).

"We should go now. It's five minutes to six," stated TenTen, looking at her watch.

"Oh. Okay."

They left, Neji hoping that the rest of his day wouldn't go quite as badly as the first part.

They got to the Hyuuga house. Hinata opened the door.

"Hello, Neji-nii-san. Hello, TenTen. My dad said that you would be coming over tonight."

Neji hadn't ever realized it, but when Hinata was hostess, she never stuttered and was always polite. TenTen, when she was guest in an unfamiliar home (she came over to Neji's regularly to borrow stuff and to return it, so it was familiar to her) was also very polite, and smiled happily.

He liked relaxed TenTen better, though.

They stepped inside the house and said hello to everyone, which consisted of Hiashi and Hinata.

Hanabi was noticeably absent..

"She's at a friend's house for dinner tonight," explained Hiashi, and showed Neji and TenTen to the dining room.

Of course she was at a friend's house. She wouldn't want to see Neji after pranking him all day.

"I kind of went all out today," said Hinata quietly, but proudly. "I hope you like it."

The table was covered in all sorts of delicious looking items.

TenTen gasped and went ga-ga over the presentation, while Neji and Hiashi admired the food.

They sat down and began to eat, Hinata pointing out the names of the items TenTen had never had before, and suddenly the two girls launched into a discussion about how to make food look good, Neji having never heard of this art before, talked to Hiashi about the plumber he had hired. Hiashi informed him that the plumber would show up the next day at 3 in the afternoon, and would help Neji get rid of the water.

"I don't know how a plumber can help, but it's the best I can do. Sorry, Neji."

"Oh, no, it's fine, thanks. I'm sure that he'll help."

"Oh! Neji-nii-san?" asked Hinata.

"Hn?" said Neji.

"I've been practicing, and I could probably help you out. I think you've seen my jutsu... I can use it to manipulate water to a certain extent."

"Is Hinata your friend who could move water?" asked a surprised Hiashi.

"Oh, I thought you knew, otou-san."

"Oh, well, I've got to see this jutsu now. How do you to it?"

"It's kind of a cross between 64 Palms and Rotation."

"Interesting..." nodded her dad. "So what do you do?"

"I emit a stream of chakra from the palms of my hands and by moving them, I can slice anything I want, and if I move my hands fast enough, it has the same 'absolute defense' effect as rotation. I practice it by picking up water for chakra control."

"That's neat," said Hiashi. "I expect a demonstration later. You came up with it by yourself?"

Hinata, losing all pretense at being the polite hostess who was totally in control, turned bright red, looked down at her food, and nodded.

"That's an impressive idea, Hinata. I'm proud."

"Thanks," said a still-crimson Hinata to her food (well, Neji assumed it was directed toward her dad, but the way she was talking she might have been thanking her food).

After Hinata got over her embarrassment, the conversation once again flowed and touched on random subjects and then shifted to another comfortably and casually. Neji was glad that Hanabi wasn't there. They finished their food quickly.

Then the plumber called and canceled, mentioning vaguely something to do with "the !#$ rain and some idiot in _Spandex_, of all things, ran by, and then my stuff was totally wrecked and kinda weirded out and I dunno what happened, so I'm sorry, but I gotta cancel."

TenTen laughed while Neji felt stupid.

No, no, no, Neji Hyuuga did _not _feel _stupid_, he felt like...

He gave up after running through many adjectives, none of which achieving the particular (but negative) idea that "stupid" expressed.

Hinata, who they realized had no idea what was going on, gave them a confused look, as did Hiashi, before TenTen, between peals of hysterical laughter, promised to explain it all later.

They were about to step outside when the rain started really coming down. Lighting was visible in the distance, while the thunder that sounded much closer than it had earlier boomed deafeningly.

"Uh-oh," said TenTen, and Neji remembered her house was far across the town. They calculated the distance away that the storm was and decided it was safe to step outside and walk to Neji's house. Neji wondered briefly if it would be safe for TenTen to go home. He was about to voice his concern when Hinata asked, "TenTen? Your house is far away, isn't it? It's dark, and I don't know if y-you should go home. You can spend the night at our house if you like."

Neji was quite grateful that he didn't have to offer anything like that.

Then, as he stepped out into the rain, he remembered that his roof leaked.

He cursed quite loudly and ran past everyone else, grabbing a pot from the kitchen of his house and running upstairs. There he was horrified to find out that not only had Hanabi added pony stickers to his window, but a large puddle near his window indicated that his roof had started to leak (again) and it was a bit late. Of course, all his towels were occupied being dried at the moment, where he had made an attempt at his bathroom, and wringing them out several times, he decided he ought to let them dry for a little while before he attempted any more water removal.

His front door opened and he heard Hinata's shocked gasp followed by "Hanabi did _this_?"

"Yes," Hiashi confirmed.

"Oh, Neji-nii-san! I am so sorry for what my sister has done! Please forgive us!"

"It's all right, Lady Hinata. My only current problem is the leak up here."

"O-Ok." Neji figured that now she was out of her house, her stutter and nervousness came back. A flash of lightning he saw out of his window signaled the coming of a crash of thunder.

"Eek!" he heard Hinata or TenTen say.

"It's okay, T-t-tenTen."

Neji decided that he should probably get Hinata up to his room to move the water out.

"Lady Hinata? My roof leaks. Can you please come up and help me clean it up?" He barely heard her step up the stairs, and was surprised when she came up so fast. He was even more surprised to see TenTen behind her. Even he rarely made it up the stairs with such little noise. He'd never thought that two people could make it up without him noticing.

"N-n-nice stickers, Neji-nii-san," tittered Hinata.

"Thank your sister for those. Tell her I really enjoyed them and will leave them up forever."

Hinata giggled.

"Do you want help taking those off, Neji?" TenTen asked.

He nodded. She began to peel off multicolored ponies and hearts from his window, but found to her dismay (and Neji's) that the stickers were the type that left weird whitish paper backing wherever they were stuck. Neji noticed Hiashi watching them from the door.

"Sorry about the stickers, Neji," he said, smiling. "But you have to admit that they add some element of style to the room. I think you should leave them up. Puts a bit of color in," he added, and Neji saw him looking at the white walls.

"Hey, my walls are only white because I haven't bothered to pick out a good color. But when I do, I'll paint this room," defended Neji.

Meanwhile, Hinata worked on moving the water slowly and carefully. "In the bucket, Nii-san?"

"Yes, please."

"There is far too much water in your house right now, Neji. Hinata, is there any limit to how much you can pick up?" asked TenTen.

"I-I d-d-don't know. I've n-n-never tried to test th-th-that. M-mostly I g-g-go for accuracy."

"Oh. Well, do you want to try it now?"

"Um... O-Okay then."

She closed her eyes, and then opened them. When she reopened them, she focused intently.

Of course, Neji at that moment was watching TenTen. She was very focused too. Neji realized she probably hadn't seen this before. He hadn't either, so he decided to watch.

Hinata picked up a large blob (Neji hated to think of it in using such a childish word, but that was pretty much all he had for it) and lifted it into the bucket. She wasn't straining at all. It looked kind of neat, actually.

"That's cool," he said, and she was so startled she dropped it. Luckily, she dropped it in the bucket. Of course, it created a huge splash.

"Thanks, Neji," said TenTen, who'd been splashed.

"I'm s-s-sorry, TenTen!" Hinata gasped at what she had done.

"That's okay, Hinata, it was Neji's fault anyway."

"Sorry. Didn't mean to." Neji hated apologizing, but sometimes it had to be done.

"Nii-san, you look angry."

"Oh, don't worry, Hinata, he just doesn't like to apologize to people. He didn't even apologize that time he pushed you down the stairs," said Hiashi from his spot at the door, grinning. TenTen gasped.

"Neji! How old were they, Mr. Hyuuga?" asked TenTen, horrified.

"Oh, Neji was 5 and Hinata was 4."

"Oh, then you were old enough to apologize, Neji! How mean!" She hit Neji on the arm, and he almost felt like he was going to blush. Almost. "You should apologize right now."

Hinata looked absolutely terrified. Neji even felt kind of bad for her. She looked like she was about to explode with embarrassment. She stuttered, "Oh... n-n-n-no, T-t-t-tenTen, that's okay... I'm okay, h-he d-d-doesn't h-h-have t-t-to ap-p-pologize...I'm fine, really... It's okay..."

"Sorry, Hinata..." said Neji. But mostly because TenTen had told him to.

Hinata turned bright red. "Th-that's okay..."

"See? There. Now we all feel much happier, right?"

Neji thought dryly that the only one feeling better was TenTen and Hiashi, the latter of which was leaning against the door now, laughing so hard they couldn't hear him, but could only see his shoulders shaking behind his long dark hair(he was leaning so that it fell across his face).

"Wow..." the Head of Clan choked out, "TenTen... I'm in awe... You made my nephew apologize... I'm gonna arrange a marriage..." He began to laugh again.

TenTen turned red. Neji turned pink (a milder form of red. And of course, everyone knew that pink used to be the manly color, instead of blue, that went onto boy-baby-beanie things. As a watered-down version of red, pink was the color of strength and power and fire and all that. Of course).

Hinata looked like she was going to laugh and cry at the same time. Neji suddenly remembered that he'd ruined her jutsu.

"That was... cool... Hinata..." Neji rarely complimented people and thought about it. So it was kind of hard. "I'm..." he had to swallow- "sorry-" he swallowed again- " I ruined it."

She nodded, looking slightly less like she was going to cry, but a little less like she was going to laugh. Hiashi straightened up and stopped laughing.

"I'm very proud that you could do that, Hinata," he said, managing to wipe the manic smile off his face and replace it with a look of pride. Neji knew he was proud.

"It- It w-w-wasn't that hard t-t-to move th-th-that much... I w-wonder if I c-can d-d-do more... Can I t-t-try... Downstairs?" she asked.

"Of course, that's why they wanted to bring you here, Hinata-chan," said TenTen happily. Hinata turned red from the new nickname. Or from what TenTen said. Neji couldn't tell.

"O-okay..."

"C'mon, let's go downstairs!" said TenTen, guiding Hinata away from the window after dumping the water outside of it.

"Careful," said Neji. TenTen gave him an odd look.

"Why?"

"I think that's part of why Hanabi's mad at me."

"You dumped a bucket of water on her?"

"Hn."

"Did you not aplogize to her, either?"

"No... I think I apologized..."

"You are hopeless! What else did you do?"

"I... er..." And he told the whole story, watching as TenTen grew redder and redder.

He shrank back in anticipation of the lecture/telling off/mad rant he was about to be on the recieving end of.

* * *

Please tell me if Hinata's Protection of the Eight Trigams Sixty Four Palms thing was incorrect... It was only in the anime filler episodes. But that's my understanding of it, with several minutes of looking it up and not finding _anything _to do with Hinata practicing her chakra control by moving the water although DEFINITELY remembering that scene... it was weird... a little far away from where Masashi Kishimoto usually goes with them... 

Oh, and I discovered another "torture Neji" fic... Oops... Oh well...

This is currently my longest chapter. Hurrah! Celebrate! There will be another chapter (at least one more) after this! I will finish!

And then I will have fully completed my first fanfic with a plot! (My songfic doesn't count... angst is not a plot, unless it's about Sasuke.)


	5. Of Cranky Cousins and Irascible Raccoons

I READ HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS!!!!!!!!!!

Gaara says to tell you that I don't own Naruto. But what does he know?

Oh, and I thought that this would be my last chapter or something, but, well, it's not. Sorry. There'll be one or two more.

* * *

He shrank back in anticipation of the lecture/telling off/ mad rant he was about to be on the recieving end of. 

And sure enough, TenTen raged at him like her weapons storms. "Neji Hyuuga! How could you!? It's like asking a woman if she's pregnant! You just- don't- say- anything! Do you know how mad that can make girls? Especially if it's true?!" Even Neji shrank back down. Hiashi grinned.

"Honestly, Neji! You fully deserve everything! Well, maybe not the baby pictures or the water, but certainly the _shoes_! And the -"

"S-sorry t-t-t-to interrupt, T-t-t-t-tenTen, b-but wh-wh-what shoes?" asked Hinata.

"Those high-heeled lime green ones that were out on his porch this morning. Oh, yeah, Neji. Do you know whose those were?"

"No."

"I-I'm m-m-missing a p-p-pair of shoes... I w-w-wonder if Hanab-b-bi stole them..."

"Get the shoes, Neji," commanded TenTen.

Neji obediently got up and left to retrieve the shoes, for he had the fear of TenTen instilled in him and he did not want her to continue her rant. He returned several minutes later holding them by the ankle straps. "These yours, Hinata?"

Hinata turned bright red. "Y-y-y-y-yes..."

TenTen looked at her in shock. "Hinata... Do you ever wear them?"

"Y-y-y-y-yes..."

TenTen looked astonished. Neji was horrified. To what event would shy Hinata possibly wear those extremely... un-Hinata-ish shoes?

"They're so cute!" said TenTen, all shock gone, replaced with a bright smile. "Can I try them on?"

"Of c-c-course," said Hinata, blushing but with a smile. Neji guessed she was happy someone liked her shoes.

TenTen tried them on and even Neji, high-heel-hater, thought they looked good on her. She strutted around the room.

"How do they look, Hinata?" she queried while practicing her model's walk.

"Th-th-they look g-g-great," stuttered Hinata.

"Thanks!"

So... Wait... Where did Hinata wear them to?

"What would you have worn those to, Lady Hinata?" asked Neji.

"Oh... Um..." Hinata turned an interesting shade of purple.

Then she fainted.

"Neji!" yelled Hiashi, who went from laughing to psycho-angry in a nanosecond. "You made her faint!"

"Sorry, Lord Hiashi. I didn't mean to," said Neji, bowing, which seemed to pacify the head of clan. Said leader composed himself.

"It's all right, Neji. Just get her the proper medical care."

"It's all right, Hiashi-san. She'll come 'round in a few minutes," said TenTen.

"Oh, okay." They waited for Hinata to wake up. She soon did.

"H-hello?" she said, stirring and blinking her wide white eyes.

"You're awake! Hooray!" cheered TenTen.

"And?" asked Neji. TenTen hit him on the back of the head.

"You're so mean, Neji! She fainted! And all you can say is 'and?'? Honestly. I would have gladly joined Hanabi's crusade against you." She glared at him, while he rubbed the back of his head.

"Ouch."

"I was- I was on a d-d-date with Sh-sh-shino-kun."

"Oh, you were, were you? And why was this?"

Hinata, shockingly, stood up straight, looked Neji in the eye, and said, "Because of _you_!" She poked him in the chest on 'you.' _"You -_" she poked him again- "said I had to get out more and find new people to talk to and all that! So I _did_!" Once again, she poked him. "But guess what? I still like Naruto-kun best out of them all! And you know what _else_?" Poked again. He stumbled back- she was projecting chakra on him, and it _hurt_. She stepped up to him again, in his face and everything. "Thank you for saying that to me! I really didn't know before whether I just liked Naruto-kun or whether I really did love him! So now it's all on _you_-" poke- "if I elope with Naruto the second he asks! Which he _will_!" Poke. "And someday, _you_'_ll_-" poke-"be just as obsessed over some girl and I'll rub it in _your_"_ -_poke- "face during a sparring match and then I'll win and you can just _eat your words_," -three pokes, one for each word- "Neji Hyuuga!" She was no longer poking him; her hands were on her hips. Her face was red, but it wasn't blushing-red, it was I Am Seeing Red kind-of-red.

And she didn't stutter at all.

Neji nearly keeled over in heart failure (had she been purposely poking him in the chest and projecting chakra from her fingers? He was definitely lucky he wasn't dead). Hinata, meanwhile, had pressed her index fingers together as though trying to get off a particularly stubborn Chinese-Finger-Torture toy, and blushed (her angry look having faded), remembering her dad was in the room.

Neji's mind was reeling. Since when had Hinata become this... Loud? TenTen hugged her, and said, "Good for you! You shocked mean old Neji! And I think he deserved it!..." She continued on, while Neji added horror to the list of emotions he was feeling right now.

"Mean old Neji," was he? He didn't like that, least of all from TenTen. He was also rather proud of Hinata, who was growing up to be a fine young kunoichi. Now if she just got mad like that during fights, the Leaf would have an excellent shinobi.

But then he probably wouldn't spar with her if that was the case... He didn't really want to die...

Hinata then picked up a rather large ball of water and threw it outside. She looked scary to Neji, even though he towered over her.

Hope Naruto knows that he's not just getting a shy, quiet, and sweet little girl...

Hinata then picked up a rather large ball of water and dumped it on Neji's head when he wasn't looking.

"Ah! What was that for, Lady Hinata?"

"What was what for, Neji-nii-san?" No stutter. She was still mad.

"Lady Hinata, didn't you just dump a large ball of water on my head?"

"What_ever_ g-g-gave you _that _idea?"

The look of absolute innocence on her face and the hysterical- I'm-Not-Laughing-What-Makes-You-Say-That? look on TenTen's face convinced him.

"Never mind," he said, wiping the water off his face, and getting up to go find a towel...

Oh, but he had none! Duh. Curses.

He stomped back to the kitchen, feeling the water drip down his back. His shirt was going to be soaked.

Ugh. He took it off.

TenTen, who'd been ooh-ing and aah-ing over Hinata's abilities, blushed when Neji walked in the room shirtless.

"Nice, Neji..." she said, looking down.

"I don't like it either, but I didn't want my shirt to get wet," he said, glaring at Hinata.

"S-s-sorry, nii-san."

"It's fine."

And suddenly, thanks to the storm, the power went out, with a nice big flash of lightning and thunder rolling in the distance.

Hinata shrieked.

TenTen immediately latched onto the nearest person, who happened to be Neji.

"Oh... Erm... Sorry," she said, and even in the dark, Neji knew she was blushing. And he was, too. But she stayed on his arm.

"Uh-oh," said Hiashi. "Well, Neji, do you have anything around here?"

"Um... I think I have a flashlight... In one of the drawers..."

"Ah. Okay. Help me look for it."

Neji left TenTen's vicelike clutches with a "Er... sorry... But, well, you know..."

"Oh, right, of course, sorry..."

He searched through the drawers, as did Hiashi.

"Aha!" cried Hiashi after several minutes' worth of frantically tearing apart Neji's kitchen. "Got it!"

"Good," said Neji, and Hiashi turned it on. It reflected in the windows, the shiny countertops, and two black-brown orbs in the middle of the room.

They were all suddenly aware of a hissing noise. Something angry, furry, clawed, and wet was sitting inside the kitchen.

They all froze, not wanting to anger the clearly unhappy raccoon. Hiashi turned off the light.

"Oh d-d-d-dear..." said Hinata.

TenTen cursed.

"TenTen!" reprimanded Hiashi.

"Sorry, Lord Hyuuga."

"But how did it get in?" asked Hiashi.

"Oh no..." TenTen's eyes widened. "I'm sorry, Neji, I left the window open upstairs..."

Neji sighed. "It's fine, TenTen. Too late now, anyway."

"You're so mean!"

"What?" Neji truly had no idea what he had done wrong now.

"You say it's fine but you don't sound like you mean it!"

"No, really, it is fine, honestly." Oh, no, was she going to have one of her tantrum-Neji-lectures _now _of all times?

"Okay... I'll take your word for it," she sighed. "But let me help get it out."

"How are we g-g-going t-t-t-to d-do that?" asked Hinata.

"Well, raccoons like the light, right? We just turn on the light where we don't want it to go, and remove anything from the path we want it to take and leave the lights off where we want it to go. Like if we want it to go down the hallway, then we turn off all the lights and open any doors it would have to pass through."

"B-b-but, N-n-neji-nii-san, the lights d-don't work..."

Oh.

"Oh."

"How do you know so much about raccoons?" asked TenTen suspiciously.

"I have the occasional raccoon problem. Not to mention I, unlike some people, read."

He smirked in the dark, because he knew he'd heard _certain teammates_ say that reading was a waste of time, and training was much better.

"Well... Nyah." He could tell she'd stuck her tongue out at him.

"Ha! Sticking your tongue out at me isn't going to make me any less right!" he said, triumphantly. If there was anything he liked, it was being right.

Although he did feel a little bad for rubbing it in TenTen's face...

"Well, it's not helping, because all the lights are off."

He sighed. "Got me there."

"Ha!"

"Well... Nyah." He couldn't help it. He liked to joke around with TenTen. Plus, it helped. He'd had a long day and sitting here and chuckling with TenTen was making it better already.

"Sticking your tongue out at me isn't going to make me any less right!" she said in a sing-song bass (or as deep as the soprano TenTen could get) to mimic his slightly-lower-than-tenor voice.

"Oooh... Burn. But I was right before you were!"

"Like that changes anything!"

"Oh, well, at least I'm still better informed about animals than some people!"

"Well, I pay attention to what's going on around me! Oooh, burn!"

As cruel as it might sound, TenTen was giggling, and Neji was smiling.

"Well..." said Neji, trying frantically to think of a small insult, nothing cruel or anything.

"Your- Your face!" said TenTen, giggling.

"_Your _face!" retorted Neji intelligently (with a laugh).

"Your face is defective!"

"_Your _face is defective!"

"I'm rubber,-" started TenTen.

"You're-glue-whatever-you-" Neji tried to finish.

"Say-bounces-off-of-ME-AND-STICKS-TO-_YOU_!" they finished at the same time, both attempting to out-speed-talk/yell the other.

Neji started laughing quietly, but then increased to really laughing hard, doubled over, gasping-for-air kind of laugh. TenTen was full out, hyperventilating chipmunk giggling.

Hiashi started laughing too, and that was when they remembered Hinata and Hiashi were in there with them.

Neji had totally forgotten. And he'd done the "your face" thing.

Oh... Embarrassing, to say the least. He cleared his throat and stood up straight from when he'd been doubled over, clutching his stomach. He could tell TenTen was doing the same thing.

"So what are we g-g-going t-t-to d-d-d-d-do?" asked Hinata. "Sorry..." She sounded mortified that she was interrupting the laugh-fest.

"Um... I don't know... wait for the lights to come on?"

"Um... You guys? Where's the raccoon?" asked TenTen.

Neji cursed again.

"Could be anywhere," said Hiashi. "Sorry I can't see anything that well in the dark, or else I'd check for it."

"I'm so sorry, Neji!" said TenTen.

"I already told you, it's fine, TenTen..." said Neji. "But now we need to find the raccoon."

"Oh," said Hinata. "It's back." She squeaked and Neji could hear her jump towards the counter, where she promptly knocked over the salt-and-pepper shakers she'd insisted he have (he could tell because heard glass and metal clattering against tile). "Sorry N-n-neji-nii-san, b-b-b-but it _licked _m-m-my f-f-foot!"

"Oh, dear," said TenTen.

"Oh, it's s-s-s-so s-soft!" she said, and Neji could tell she was stooping down to pet it. Suddenly, another lightning bolt flashed in the distance. Neji began to count.

One-one-thousandth... Two-one-thousandth... Three-one-thousandth... Four-one-thousandth... He got up to ten.

_BOOM! _The windows rattled a bit, and the lights flickered back on.

"It's getting farther away," said Neji. "Ten miles."

The raccoon appeared to have taken a liking to Hinata, but it didn't like the light. It scampered off to underneath the table.

"Oh... I'm s-s-sorry... It's ok-k-kay... You'll b-b-be fine... Here, c-c-can we p-p-put you outside?" she said, reaching down to the raccoon.

"No, Lady Hinata! Don't!" said Neji, as Hiashi cried, "Hinata, no!" But she was holding the furry animal like it was a beloved pet, and it looked happy and content in her arms.

"It's fine... I b-b-bet you're hung-gry, aren't you, l-little g-g-guy?" she crooned, stroking the top of its head, which it seemed to enjoy. "Here, we'll g-g-get you s-something t-t-to eat, hold on..." She searched around Neji's kitchen.

"N-n-nii-san, why are your c-c-cabinets and-d-d s-s-stuff empty?" she asked.

"Oh, I think your sister emptied them out earlier."

"Oh... Ot-t-tou-san, would you m-m-mind t-t-terribly if you w-went b-b-back t-t-to the house to g-g-get something for th-th-this g-g-guy t-t-to eat?"

"Not at all, Hinata... That is if these two-" he pointed at Neji and TenTen- "can be trusted alone."

"Oh, no, Hinata'll be a great chaperone, you don't need to worry about us, Lord Hyuuga!" said TenTen.

"Well, I'll take your word for it, then. Hinata... Make sure they don't do anything inappropriate. I'll be back in a few minutes." He walked out the front door.

"Lady Hinata, you don't think it has any diseases or anything like that, do you? I mean, it is a wild animal..."

"Oh, n-n-n-no, I'd-d-d kn-n-now, I'm a m-m-medic n-n-nin with the Byakugan, rem-m-memb-ber? It's f-f-fine..." she said, smiling down at it. "Of c-c-course, I c-c-couldn't k-k-keep it... It b-b-belongs in the wild, af-ft-ter all... B-b-but I c-can feed you oc-c-casionally..." she said, once more talking to the raccoon.

"Well, that's odd," said TenTen.

"Yeah..." said Neji.

"Here... w-w-would you l-l-like t-t-to p-p-pet it?" she asked. "I g-g-guess you'd have t-t-t-to l-l-let it sniff your h-hand f-f-first..."

TenTen held out a hesitant right hand to the raccoon's nose, and it happily sniffed her, licked her hand, and went back to its previous task of burying its head into Hinata's stomach. Hinata giggled. "It t-t-t-tickles..." TenTen, entranced by the furry creature, petted its back.

"Oh... It is soft! Neji, you should pet it!"

"Erm... Okay..." He, too, held out a hesitant hand to the raccoon. But instead of happily sniffing him, it hissed (nearly causing Hinata to drop it) and tried to bite him. He pulled his hand away rather fast.

"B-b-bad Hikaru!" she scolded it. Neji looked at her in confusion.

"You named a raccoon, a nocturnal animal, Hikaru? Meaning light?"

"W-well... D-d-do you have a b-b-better n-name for him? I'm t-t-trying t-t-to see if I c-c-can g-get anything b-b-better..."

"How about... Hideki?" said TenTen thoughtfully. "I like that name. I don't think Neji should name him. Hideki doesn't like Neji."

"I-I l-l-l-like that-t-t..." said Hinata. "Yeah... I th-th-think I'll c-c-call him that... It's c-c-cute! It f-f-fits him, s-s-somehow."

Neji felt dumb. He'd just been dissed by a raccoon.

"But that's okay that the raccoon doesn't like you, Neji... We like you!" said TenTen.

"Thanks..." said Neji.

Meanwhile, Hinata was trying to teach Hideki his name.

"Hello!" called out a voice from the door. "I'm back! And I brought food for the raccoon!"

* * *

-shrieks and hits self on forehead (then falls backward out of sheer stupidity) for such a cliche plot twist- 

"You honestly made the lights go out? Because of a _storm_?" asks Gaara curiously. "I cannot believe you."

Oh and do _not _approach wild animals. Raccoons carry rabies, anyway, and unless you're in one of the states in which you can have one and your raccoon does not have any rabies or whatever, don't keep one as a pet. I just needed a slightly scary wild animal that would greatly dislike Neji (and love everyone else). Plus, I was going to have it be a cat, but, you know, cats you can keep, and they're not quite as... cantankerous...Cats usually go "Mraow!" if they don't like you, and if they do. Plus, they're much too cute and fluffy, and raccoons are much more ornery Plus I like raccoons.

Oh, and while thinking of the title for this chapter, I came up with "Of Cranky Cousins and Recalcitrant Raccoons" as I was just tired of saying Neji does such-and-such. But it didn't fit, so I put Irascible Raccoons, which is also a very cool word. But I'm wondering... I like alliteration... would Recalcitrant Raccoons have been just as good?

I love the dictionary feature on this site... I love dictionaries. I get lost while doing homework for Language Arts... I'll turn a page, looking for a specific word, and I'll see a word that I've never heard before, and I'll just _have _to read the definition.


	6. Plotting Relatives

OOC Neji in this chapter. 

You know, I see TenTen as either a totally violent mood-swinging kunoichi with lots of attitude, or a totally calm person who helps Neji out and follows him around, but not like a fangirl, more like his best friend... I think I went for violent mood-swings in this fic.

Plus I'm terrible with romance... :P it's weird to write... well... yeah...

Oh, and if you haven't read certain chapters in the Japanese manga, this is ahead of the English translation and makes references to certain things that I'm sure those of you on here long enough know about, but still... (read: This has spoilers. Don't read unless you know what happens later.)...

-hits self over the head- Cliche'd plot device ahead.

You have been warned.

* * *

Hideki enjoyed the leftovers Hiashi brought him. Hinata removed blob of water after blob, and occasionally paused in her work to dump some on Neji, while TenTen laughed at him. 

"You earned it, Neji," TenTen informed him after a particularly cold soaking. "You are so tactless."

"Only when I talk. Which isn't much."

"But when you do..." She grinned. "You are as subtle as... Lee."

Ouch. As if the raccoon had understood her intent to verbally wound Neji and wanted to play along, he decided to walk up to Neji at that moment and attack his foot. Neji spent several minutes attempting to pick up the raccoon and move him aside or give him to Hinata. Something. But the raccoon was, for some strange reason known only to it, intent upon hurting Neji. It scratched him (who knew raccoons had claws?) and bit him on the arm. He cursed under his breath. Hinata better have been right when she said the thing hadn't had any diseases. Like rabies. That can put a real damper on being a ninja. Neji continued to battle over the raccoon while Hinata ignored him and TenTen giggled.

"Oh... 'subtle as Lee'... That's a real insult," laughed Hiashi as all this happened. Neji remembered when Hiashi met Lee... What a sight that had been. Exclamations of The Springtime of Youth and such things... Hiashi had been rather overwhelmed, and had eventually recieved a headache, and needed to go to bed four hours early that day.

Hiashi, as a ninja, could take on several teams of jounin. And Lee drained him of all energy.

Neji still remembered Hiashi's words that day. "I don't doubt that boy's skills... But he could take on several platoons and not be harmed. That Gai must be a really good teacher, ne?"

Neji had replied, "No."

He decided to acknowledge TenTen with a simple, "Hn," and finally succeeded with the raccoon, handing it over to Hinata, who scolded it.

"Oh, now you're worried, aren't you, Neji?" She was clearly rather pleased with herself.

As well she should be. Neji was starting to feel as though he was losing... Although what battle he was fighting he still wasn't sure.

"Hn," he said.

TenTen suffered a severe mood swing, and said, "Fine! Be like that! You think you're so special if you only say 'Hn' like that Uchiha!"

Ew, she was comparing him to that pale pointy-haired traitor!

She went over to join Hinata with a small wave of the hand.

Well, hanging out with TenTen was never boring, that much Neji knew. It was always fun... and when it wasn't, it was funny later.

Hiashi thought so, too. "Your girlfriend is very interesting, is she not? She seems to be very fast at... well... shifting from one thing to the next."

"She's not my girlfriend, Lord Hyuuga."

Hiashi gave him the I-Am-A-Know-It-All-And-You-Are-Wrong-Look that Neji had recently perfected, as a Hyuuga (it was practically required). With his arms folded, one eyebrow raised, and the mouth in a nearly-straight-but-slightly-curved-down sneer, and face tipped a little to the side and back, he made even Neji almost feel a little foolish.

Almost.

"If that's what you say..." said Hiashi.

Neji really needed to fix the problem of people wrongly assuming that he and TenTen were together... He wasn't quite sure how yet, however, so he pushed the thought to the back of his mind and glared at the ground.

The girls' conversation, in the silence of the Hyuuga boys, was clearly audible in the echoing tile-floored kitchen.

"I g-g-got the sh-shoes at-t P-p-payless..."

"Oh! Okay!" said TenTen, clearly over her angry mood swing. "I'll be sure and look there later! Hey, do you want to go shopping with me sometime? I've seen your clothes... They're so cute!"

"Oh! I'd l-l-love t-t-to... That would b-b-be so much f-fun!" said Hinata.

"Well, it's nice to see they're getting along well," said Hiashi. "Even if she's mad at _you_."

"Oh, I'm not mad at Neji!" called TenTen cheerfully. "I just think he lacks tact, is all! But I'm not mad at him! In fact, I-" her eyes widened, and Neji looked at her, eyebrows raised, hoping that she'd finish that. But she did a u-turn as fast as possible. "In fact, I can't be mad at him! I have to train with him in the mornings, and I can't be mad at him, or else-"

"Or else I wouldn't be able to live a normal life... what with your Soshoryu," finished Neji, muttering the last bit under his breath.

"Yeah!" said TenTen. "That! Anyway, so, um... The storm seems to have cleared up! Look!"

And surely enough, the moon was visible through a tiny crack in the cover of clouds that before had been rather mountainous and menacing. The night sky, though, turned them an odd brown color, and they no longer looked quite so frightening.

They all sat and admired the moon in the sky, except Hinata, who was working on removing the water. She did, however, take short breaks to pet Hideki and look out at the sky with them as TenTen identified different constellations.

After one such break, Hinata dumped a particularly large ball of water on Neji.

"Lady Hinata... I thought you were done with that!" he said angrily. Indeed, she had refrained from doing so for quite a while, and he had thought she was done.

"It's the element of surprise, Neji!" said TenTen. "If you thought she was done, you wouldn't attempt to defend yourself, would you?"

Neji thought Hinata had been incapable of such underhanded methods, but one look at her face told him she was smirking... Well, as much of a smirk as she could manage. It was an unfamiliar, and rather frightening, look on Hinata's face.

"That's my daughter!" pronounced Hiashi proudly, beaming. "A fine kunoichi."

"I admit that was a good move..." said Neji grudgingly.

"Good? It was fabulous!" TenTen said happily. "You should have seen the look on your face! It was so cute- I mean, funny!"

"Cute?" asked Neji.

"No, I meant funny!" said TenTen defensively, although she looked like she knew it was a losing battle.

"But you said cute," said Hiashi.

"But I meant funny."

"But you _said _cute," said Neji.

"But I _meant funny."_

"But you _said_-" Neji got cut off.

"BUT I MEANT FUNNY, GOT IT?! I CAN MIX UP MY WORDS, CAN'T I?" blustered a now frustrated TenTen.

Neji thought it was funny how they could make her moods change so fast.

"Wow..." said Hiashi. "Neji, you've got yourself a really interesting g-"

"Don't say it, Lord Hiashi," said Neji dangerously. TenTen glared at Hiashi, as if willing him to finish that word.

"Right," said Hiashi, smiling benignly at them.

"A-anyway..." said Hinata. "I'm d-done."

"Oh," said Neji. "Thanks. A lot. You really helped out."

"N-no p-p-problem..." said Hinata. "I needed t-t-to p-practice ch-chakra c-c-control anyway..."

"And thanks for dumping several gallons of water on Neji," said TenTen, who looked as though she didn't particularly forgive him for bugging her about the cute-vs.-funny thing.

"No p-p-problem... It was... fun..." said Hinata, turning red.

"Hn," said Neji derogatorily.

"Oh, it's getting late," said Hiashi.

"Oh, um, the weather seems to have cleared up, right?" said TenTen. "I can go to my home now, I mean, I don't really want to trouble you guys."

"Oh, okay. Th-that's f-f-fine. Whichever y-you w-want," said Hinata.

"Well, in that case, I think my parents are probably expecting me, and they don't particularly like it if me or my little sister make plans out of nowhere unless it's necessary," TenTen said. Hiashi nodded in agreement. "I'd better go home, then."

"Y-yeah," said Hinata.

"Well, in that case, have Neji walk you home!" said Hiashi brightly.

"Okay!" said TenTen, just as happily.

"That's fine," said Neji, although he was a little angry at Hiashi for volunteering him without asking. He liked TenTen (really liked her), but he disliked her little sister (named Nana, TenTen's family had a thing about liking repeated syllables), who was just like Hanabi. With weaponry. And twin ponytails (like TenTen's hair-bun-things).

"Well, we b-b-better go," said Hinata. "You sh-should p-p-probably leave, t-too."

"Yeah, let's go, Neji!" said TenTen.

"Hn," said Neji in agreement.

TenTen dragged Neji to the door by the hand. Which nearly made him blush. And he couldn't see her face, so he couldn't tell.

They went the opposite direction to walk to TenTen's house- TenTen was too tired to run or anything like that.

Since Neji wasn't the most talkative person, they passed most of the journey in a slightly awkward silence.

"Well..." TenTen said, breaking the silence. "There's my house."

"Hn," said Neji, thoughts focused on trying to figure out how they could get people to stop thinking they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

"Oh! Neji!" said TenTen's mom. "How sweet of you to walk TenTen home! Why don't you come in?"

Neji liked TenTen's mom. She was friendly, and always made him come in for stuff. Of course, then he had to talk to Nana, who was really high-pitched and a lot like Hanabi, always hinting at his and TenTen's "relationship".

"I just made cookies!" said TenTen's mom.

Plus, TenTen's mom always offered him cookies. Neji, although not fond of sweet food, liked the dark chocolate in her chocolate chip cookies. So he always had one. It had been that way since they were a Genin team, on the very first time he walked TenTen home (Lee and Gai had insisted on training until late, which TenTen's parents had been fine with because they'd known about it for a week.). She'd offered him cookies, and pretty much forced them down his throat. Of course, he'd liked them, so he always stayed for cookies.

"Okay," said Neji. He never said, "hn" to TenTen's parents... Nice as they were, somehow he didn't think they'd appreciate it.

And he liked the cookies.

So TenTen's mom sat him down at a table with a plate of cookies and a glass of milk. Neji, although feeling childish, ate the cookies and milk.

Suddenly, TenTen's mom gasped and pointed to his unbandaged leg (the one the raccoon had attacked). "Neji-kun! How did you hurt your leg?"

"Oh... That... I had a bad experience with a raccoon... I'm told it didn't have any diseases, though."

"Well, why didn't you bandage it or anything like that?" TenTen's mom was now scolding him. "That can really be bad for you. Here, let me heal it. But I've got to clean it first."

"Mom..." said TenTen, looking embarrassed.

"Don't you 'Mom' me, TenTen! Open wounds like this, especially inflicted by an animal, can have serious consequences and require tending to! And cleaning. Special cleaning that medic-nins like myself can do. And most people can't. Hang on, I've got all my stuff from when TenTen used to get hurt with all her dad's weapons."

She disappeared around the corner, muttering about "irresponsiblity" and "serious problems that result from ignoring wounds from wild animals".

"I did clean it..." said Neji.

"Yeah, but you didn't bandage it or heal it. That's the thing," said TenTen.

"Hello," said a high-pitched voice from behind Neji.

"Hello," echoed a similar voice from behind TenTen.

"Nana," said Neji. "Hello, and Hanabi, too. So that's where you were spending the night."

"Hello, you two," said TenTen.

"I didn't write on your walls," said Hanabi. "That was the green kid. With the big eye-brows. He came in while I was there, and I thought I was going to get in trouble. But he yelled something about youth, drew that on the wall, and left, and I guess he didn't tell on me. But I put up the pictures," she said proudly. "I hope you know why."

"We know," said Neji. TenTen nodded.

"Oooh, Hanabi, he said 'we'!" said Nana.

"Yeah, I know, Nana! Does that mean they're _together_?"

"No," said Neji.

"Shut up, Nana," said TenTen. Neji glared at Hanabi, who grinned. So did Nana.

"Shall we, Nana?" said Hanabi.

"I think so," said Nana. "On three."

"Right!"

"One, two, three!"

Neji was expecting a pull on his hair and then something horrid. Or perhaps a pull on his shirt and then something horrid. But he didn't expect Nana to surround him using clones, knock him out, and then pull him into a closet.

Neji, although he hated to admit it, had been beaten by a small child.

Well, he hadn't had his Byakugan activated. He had been eating cookies! Who activates their chakra-using Bloodline Limit while eating _cookies _and _milk_? Plus it would be just plain mean to beat up a little girl whose mother had offered him cookies.

Neji stood in the dark closet and, activating his Byakugan, looked outside to see Hanabi and Nana pulling faces at them through the door.

"Well," said TenTen, who had suffered a similar fate. "Looks like they got us, huh."

Neji could only seethe in silence. Hanabi was dead. TenTen pronounced the same for Nana, and they proceeded to look at the door.

"It's no use," said Hanabi. "The only doorknob on this is on the outside. We rigged it so that it won't open except from the outside."

Neji cursed. They heard footsteps.

"Well, where did Neji go?" asked TenTen's mom's voice. "I found all the best bandages, too! That boy!"

"We're in here, Mom!" shouted TenTen.

But her footsteps faded, and Hanabi's voice came back. "Oh, and she can't hear you guys, even if you bang on the door, 'cause we put some tags in there that prevent that. We can't either, but we know you're yelling something fierce in there 'cause TenTen's face is red. Haha, now it's turning redder!"

"I'm going to kill her," said Neji. He actually felt bad for TenTen right now. And he really, really hated Hanabi. He was certain she was the one who put Nana up to this. Nana was annoying, and even though she was TenTen's little sister, she wasn't really all that smart.

"Please do," said TenTen.

"So when are they planning on letting us out?"

Neji walked up to the door and mouthed very clearly, knowing Hanabi would pick up on it. _When are you planning on letting us out?_

"Oh, I don't know. Whenever we feel like it."

Neji looked at TenTen using the technique that allowed him to see things at night better. She was sitting in the corner.

"You know, my mom's gonna kill me if she finds out I spent the night in a closet with a boy, even if they put us in here," she said. "And even if it's you. She likes you, but..."

Neji didn't really think they would do anything like _that _in a closet, but TenTen had rather overprotective parents. He sat down beside her.

"So what should we do?" he asked. "This is your closet, after all. What do you have in here? Flashlights... Games, anything like that?"

"No... that's the back closet."

"So do we just sit?"

"Well... That's kind of boring."

"So...? Any suggestions?"

They heard TenTen's mom calling for her.

"Oh, snap," said Nana. Neji saw her make a clone, and then transform it into TenTen, who walked upstairs.

"Hooray! Maybe my mom will figure it out!" said TenTen happily.

"No, they just made a clone of you."

TenTen's shoulders sagged. "Aw, and I thought we'd get out of here."

"I suppose we can't really beat the door down, can we," said Neji.

"No, I don't think so."

"And we can't do that teleportation jutsu that Gai does."

"No."

"So we really can't do anything."

"Nope."

"What do they want from us?" said Neji. This, by far, was probably the worst moment of his day. He was stuck in a closet with no means of getting out, his leg was beginning to hurt from having a raccoon mauling it, and to make it all worse, TenTen was stuck in the closet with him. He shifted his position, and bumped into an extra-long coat that overbalanced on its hanger and fell. The sharp part of the metal hanger hit his head.

"Ouch," he said, looking up.

"Hey, TenTen? What's that?" he asked, looking at the space above him. It looked... almost like a door!

"Oh... that's a kind of an attic, of sorts. Not really big enough for anything major, but it's a little extra space. Doesn't lead to anywhere, though."

Neji sighed. "My day isn't going well."

"Sorry," she said.

"Hn." And now his head hurt. He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, remembering that he'd done that just this morning.

"Do you always say that?" she asked, sounding annoyed.

"What?"

"Hn," she said. "You and that Uchiha boy. You're always saying, 'hn'. It's _so _annoying." TenTen tended to lose her patience with people when trapped. He just let it slide, and decided to apologize.

"Oh," he said. "Sorry."

"Yay!" she cried happily. "You apologized!" She leaned over and hugged him.

"Okay," he said, taken aback by the sudden shift in her mood.

She let go and sat back down. "But we're still _stuck _in here."

"Well, then we have to do something about it. No air-conditioning vents, huh."

"Nope."

"Well, that was my last resort."

"And we don't know when they'll let us out. Geez, I'm starting to be hungry already."

"And they close the gates to the Hyuuga compound at a certain time of night. And no one can get in. It's a recent addition- since Lady Hinata's... kidnapping."

"Oh," she said quietly. He knew she was remembering what he'd told her about his life.

"And I won't be able to go home tonight unless we get out soon."

"So how should we get out?"

"That's what I've been asking you."

"So why, with your almighty Byakugan, can you not see a way out?"

"I can only see what's there, TenTen. And if it isn't there I can't see it."

"Bickering, are you?" called Hanabi. "I can tell by your expressions!"

"Ooh, are they bickering like a married couple already?"

"Yes, they are!"

"Shut up!" yelled Neji. "Just shut up!" Hanabi stuck her tongue out at him.

"Neji, they can't hear you," said TenTen.

"I know, that's why it's fun. You should try it." Neji was starting to get a little touchy, too.

"SHUT UP, YOU TWO! JUST SHUT UP! WE'RE NOT TOGETHER, AND WE WANT PEOPLE TO STOP THINKING THE WRONG THING!!!!!!" yelled TenTen. "Oh, that was fun," she said to Neji.

"Well, that one was clear. I read your lips, TenTen. And I have an idea for you two. Since you so obviously like each other, and don't want people to think the wrong thing, well, people think you're together... So why don't you make them correct?" said Hanabi.

TenTen and Neji blinked.

"That's an approach I'd never thought of before," said Neji.

"Me neither," said TenTen. "And I usually do well at those think-outside-the-box kind of things."

"Well, I don't."

"No, you're too... Stick-to-the-rules-ish."

"Hn," he said.

"Do you have to say that?!" she said.

"Sorry," he said again.

"I love it when you say sorry!" she said, hugging him.

Neji liked it when she hugged him. He was beginning to think Hanabi and Nana were right about what they said.

"You know..." said TenTen, still with her arms around him, "they might... they might have a point."

"I was just thinking that. So, will you go out with me?" he said.

"Yes!" said TenTen. He put his arms around her.

"So... Now we'd really be in trouble if your mom caught us in here, huh?" he said.

"Yeah..." She laughed, and kissed him.

"Augh! MY EYES! MY INNOCENT, NAIVE, CHILD'S EYES! LET THEM OUT, NANA!" Hanabi screeched. Nana obliged, and the door unlocked with a click to reveal Neji and TenTen kissing. Nana, too screeched, causing her mom to come running. She took one look at the closet and turned red.

"TENTEN!" She, too, screeched. "ONCE YOUR FATHER HEARS ABOUT THIS, YOUNG LADY, HE WILL MAKE SURE YOU ARE GROUNDED FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE! AND _YOU_-" she rounded on Neji. "I THOUGHT YOU WERE A GOOD, KIND LITTLE BOY!"

Neji cursed inside his head. This really was turning out to be the worst day of his life.

"But Mom..." TenTen said.

" 'BUT MOM!' _'BUT MOM!'_ DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT YOU CAN GIVE ANY GOOD EXPLANATION AS TO WHY YOU TWO WERE _IN THE CLOSET_-" The thought was apparently, too horrible for words, and she turned redder, a vein pulsating in her temple.

"Nana locked us in, and told us we weren't allowed to come out if we didn't-"

"OH!! OH... So that's how it is, then..." said TenTen's mom, quieting down to a dangerous hissing whisper, and Neji was silently grateful he had been spared. "You, young lady, are in so much trouble."

"Mrs. TenTen's mom, I'm sure my cousin put your daughter up to it, she's been doing stuff to me all day... I could bring her home, or you could talk to my uncle-" Neji volunteered, but he got cut off.

"Oh, is your uncle still up? Do you know his phone number?" she said to Neji.

"Yeah, here, I'll dial it."

He dialed, and Hiashi came to the phone. 

"Moshi-moshi," he said. "Oh, hello, Neji. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Yeah, Hanabi got in a bit of trouble..."

"Oh she did, did she? May I talk to her friend's parent?"

"Um, yeah, that's why I'm calling. Here-" and he handed over the phone to TenTen's mom, who then proceeded to talk Hiashi's ear off about the fact that she had just found Neji and TenTen _kissing _in her _front closet _and apparently Hanabi and Nana had locked them in there and told them they couldn't leave unless, well, he knew, so what should they do?

They heard Hiashi's reply through the phone. "Why don't we let them have their sleep-over tonight, and deal with it tomorrow? It's much too late right now, and I think that punishments are always best dealt out in the mornings, anyway, and it'll give us some time to think of something beneficial and fitting to the act. So let's just let them have their fun for now. But Neji's too late to get in."

Indeed, he was. Neji looked at the clock. It was 11:37. He really had been in that closet for quite some time.

"It's impossible to get through the gates of the Hyuuga premises after 10:00, so we can't go out or in. Disabling the jutsu is rather complicated, requires... destroying things, and it only works if we evacuate everyone, so I'm sorry, but can you have Neji over tonight? He needs a place to stay," explained Hiashi.

"Of course, Neji is such a good boy, we're always glad to see him here. It's fine if he wants to stay the night, we've got an extra room."

"Oh, well, that's good, then. Thank you so much."

"Oh, Neji's no problem at all."

"Well, thanks again. Goodnight."

"Goodbye!"

They hung up the phone. "And don't ever let me catch you two doing something like that in a closet!" she said to Neji and TenTen.

"We won't," assured Neji.

"Although I always thought you two were together... You seemed like it, you know."

Well, at least now it was true.

"But don't do stuff like that if you do ever get together! Do _nice _things that parents are _okay _with! Like... the movies... wait, no, that's in the dark... Maybe the zoo? Yes, the zoo is always a nice place. Well, no, animals aren't that interesting. Shopping... Shopping is a cute thing for couples to do! Yes, go shopping. And... Festivals are good... But people are always dancing there and doing all sorts of things- Oh, wait, I never did fix your leg! Come here, Neji." She looked at them suspiciously. "Wait, if you were in the closet, why didn't you call out! I know you can see through walls, Neji..."

"Hanabi made it so you couldn't hear us, but we did plenty of yelling, believe me," said TenTen.

"Oh all right, well, come here, Neji. You did clean these wounds, didn't you?" She began to work on patching him up, and surprised him when she healed his wounds really well.

"Thanks," he said.

"That's all right, I wouldn't want you to get gangrene or something like that." She left them, saying, "Why don't you two watch a movie or something? I can trust you, Neji, and that's the _only _reason I'm doing this. So TenTen, show him to his room when you're done. You know the rules... Don't pull any of that stuff from the closet or whatever, or you're sleeping on the streets, Neji. And I _will _come and check on you." She left the room, and they sat down on the couch.

"So... movie?" asked TenTen.

"Yeah... what's a good one?" asked Neji.

"Oh, I don't know... Something with action, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess, sure."

"Hm..."

They perused the DVD's TenTen's family owned, and finally came up with some good movie and turned it on.

They watched the movie for a little while, then practiced their weapons throwing skills with popcorn- read: threw popcorn at each other when they got tired of the movie-, Neji laughing and TenTen giggling until they realized they'd have to pick it up by hand because the vacuum would wake everyone up, and in TenTen's words, "It wouldn't be pretty." So they picked it up. While they were doing so, TenTen looked up at him.

"So... Neji?" asked TenTen

"Yes?" he said, remembering she hated for him to say "hn".

"You mentioned earlier that you were having a pretty bad day... Well, I was wondering..." she said hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"Is it still bad? After we got out of the closet?"

Neji smiled. "Not at all... After all, we're going out now, right?" TenTen squealed and hugged him.

"I was hoping you'd say that!" she said happily. He kissed her, and decided that his day really hadn't been so bad after all.

* * *

Oh-my-gosh-corny-ending-corny-ending-corny-ending-corny-ending...

I'm terrible at ending things... But the ending was fluffy, and I like fluffy things.

If I ever think of a better ending, I will fix it. I promise.

Well, I'm proud that I'm done with my first ever fic after much hard work and agonizing and parents telling me to just GO TO BED.

Of course, I didn't listen to them, and that's why I sleep in every morning! I'm glad I finished it before I left on my vacation, though.

Please review. Reviews inspire good writing.


End file.
